Trouble Is A Friend
by BaeHalstead
Summary: Jay's life is turned upside down when he suddenly has the responsibility of caring for a small child put on his shoulders. With the help of Erin, and the rest of Intelligence, follow Jay as he embarks on the journey of parenthood. {Eventual Linstead}
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I have no right to be starting up another fic right now, I know I suck and I should probably focus on the fics I've already started, but this idea floated into my head and won't find its way out. I've thought a lot about this, and I think you guys will really like it. Enjoy!**

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><p>Halstead was awoken by a sharp knocking on his door at 7am on his first day off in weeks. To say he was angry would be an understatement. He made his way to his front door and opened it with a heavy force, he got even more frustrated when he didn't immediately see a face on the other side of it. After taking a look around, he figured it was probably someone messing with him; until he looked down. There in front of his door, sat a sleeping baby in a car seat, along with a diaper bag. Jay took another look around to see if he could find the child's parents, but had no luck.<p>

As if on cue, the infant began crying, Jay instantly froze. What was he supposed to do; he'd never taken care of a child before and he didn't even know who this kid belonged to, the last thing he needed was to be accused of kidnapping. He figured his best bet was to get the baby to stop crying, so he bent down and picked up the car seat and diaper bag, revealing a manila envelope underneath the bag. He reached down to pick it up and placed it into the car seat next to the screaming baby. Jay walked into his apartment and took the baby out of the seat. "Baby now, envelope later." He said to himself. He could sense that the child was scared and confused, and he tried to be as gentle as possible. He gripped the baby's bottom to check if she was wet, and when he felt the heavy diaper he knew that was probably the reason for her tears. Still carrying the baby, he walked back over to his couch and opened the diaper bag in hope of actually finding some diapers. Upon opening the bag, he found it was filled with all the necessities; bottles, formula, diapers, pacifiers, blankets and several pairs of pants and onesies. He grabbed a diaper and laid the infant down on his couch.

The poor baby was still screaming her head off, and Jay was getting anxious. "Shhh, it's okay. Do you need a diaper change?" He said in his best baby voice, in attempt to sooth her. It took several minutes, but eventually Jay was able to securely fasten a fresh diaper onto the young girl. He picked her back up, and she was beginning to calm down. He took a pacifier from the bag and stuck it into the baby's mouth. He lay her against his shoulder and started to pat her back and bounce her up and down. About twenty minutes later, he could hear her breathing even out and realized she had fallen asleep. He took a sigh of relief, now it was time to see what was in that envelope. Halstead walked towards his bedroom and placed the sleeping infant onto his bed. He surrounded her with pillows to prevent her from falling off the bed and went back to the living room. He found a baby monitor in the bag and decided to set it up, so he'd be able to hear her in case she woke up.

He took a seat on his couch and took the manila envelope from where he left it and flipped it open. Inside, there were a variety of papers. The first thing to catch his eye was a second and smaller envelope with his name written neatly in cursive across the front. He tore open the envelope and began reading.

_"Dear Jay, _

_I'm sure you're pretty confused right now. My name is Anna Hart, and I'm not sure if you even remember me- but about a year ago we fooled around a few times. We met at that bar on Oak Street and really hit off. Anyway, after we broke it off I found out I was pregnant. You're the only possibility as the father, I wasn't sleeping with anyone else during that time. The pregnancy went normally and on July 12__th__, 2014 Ava Nicole Halstead was born. I tired Jay, I really thought I'd be able to care for her, but I was wrong. I'm only working part time and I can't afford to care for her any longer. I know you're probably thinking how horrible can a person be to abandon her child, but I'm only doing what's best for Ava. We weren't 'together' for that long, but I did get to know you, and I know that you will be an amazing father to our little girl. Everything you need is in the envelope- her birth certificate, shot records, and a Waiver of Interest where I signed away my parental rights. All you need to do is sign them saying you will take on full responsibility and return them to my lawyer at 'Joseph & Johns'. Good luck Jay, and congratulations._

_Love,_

_Anna"_

"Oh my God," Jay said to himself after reading the letter. He went through the rest of the paperwork in the file and found the Waiver of Interest Anna was talking about, and sure enough she had surrendered her parental rights, and Ava was all his. He found Ava's birth certificate with his name listed as the father next. Now was the time to freak out. He didn't know why, but his first thought that came to mind was to call Erin, she'd know what to do.

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><p>"Hello?" Erin called groggily through her cell phone. It was barely after 8:30am, and she'd had a late night with her boyfriend, firefighter Kelly Severide.<p>

"Erin! I'm so glad you answered." Jay said frantically, although smiling at the sound of her extra raspy morning voice.

"Halstead?" Jay could sense the confusion and annoyance in Erin's tone, "Why are you calling me before 10am on our one day off?" She moved Kelly's arm from her waist and sat up in bed, pulling the sheet with her. Even with her annoyed manner, she knew Jay wouldn't have called her if it wasn't something serious; she knew how they savored their days off and both enjoyed sleeping in late.

"I know it's early, but I need you to come over. I don't know what to do." He was scared, Erin could tell and she was already getting out of bed. She didn't know what was going on, but she knew it was bad. Jay and Erin had a promise to always have each other's backs- at work or not- today was no different.

"Don't worry, I'll be right there." She said with a rush and hung up the phone without waiting for a response.

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><p>Erin sat on the edge of the bed to put on her shoes. She suddenly felt lips on her neck and began to smile, "Come back to bed," she heard Kelly say in a clearly seductive voice, while pressing kisses up her neck behind her.<p>

Erin let out a slight laugh, "I can't, I have to go help Jay." She stated matter-of-factly.

"He's a grown man, I'm sure he can take care of himself." Kelly said, grinning before returning his lips to her neck.

"Kelly, he'd be here in a second if I needed anything; I'm not going to turn my back on him now. Besides, he wouldn't have called me if wasn't something big. I have to go." She got up from the bed and turned around in order to give Kelly a quick peck on the lips. "I'll be back later, lock up when you leave." And with that she was gone. Kelly let out a huff and flopped back onto the bed.

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><p>Erin didn't bother to knock when she arrived at Jay apartment. She unlocked the door with the key Jay had given her a few months back. "Jay?" She called out when she walked in. She noticed the car seat and diaper bag on the floor near his couch and continued searching the apartment for him. "Jay?" She called again, a little bit louder this time.<p>

Seconds later, Jay emerged from his bedroom carrying a baby bottle. "Shh, I just got her back to sleep."

Erin looked at him, confused, "You just got who back to sleep?" She looked at Jay in the eye before continuing, more sternly she asked, "Jay, what the hell is going on?"

Jay walked over to the coffee table and picked up the letter. He handed it to Erin and stroked the back of his neck. He gave Erin some time to read it and awaited her reaction. After reading the letter Erin looked up at Jay, she didn't know what to say. "What are you going to do?" Erin asked after several moments of silence between the two.

Jay shook his head, "I don't know, Erin."


	2. Chapter 2

Jay and Erin sat in a dreadful silence, thinking about what their next step was going to be for over half an hour. A screaming Ava brought the detectives back to reality, and Jay quickly got up to go see what was wrong. Erin stayed sat on the couch, she really cared about Jay and wanted to help him as much as physically possible. Moments later, Jay came out of the bedroom holding a crying infant which prompted Erin to stand from the couch to go and meet her. Making her way towards Jay, a smile began to grow on Erin's face; he looked good with a baby, she thought to herself. "You wanna hold her?" She heard Jay ask. Ava had calmed down a little bit now that she wasn't alone, but still distressed.

"Yeah, I do." Erin said with a smile before taking the baby from Jay's arms. Ava took an immediate liking to Erin, quieting almost instantly after getting settled. "Hi baby. I'm Erin, your daddy's partner. I bet you're really scared right now, huh? Yeah, life's scary sometimes. But that's okay because I know that your daddy's gonna take real good care of you." Erin walked around the room as she spoke calmly to the young infant she was carrying and Jay couldn't help the wide smile from appearing on his face. Eventually, Erin looked up to Jay, "She's asleep again. I think she just wants to be held for a bit." Jay nodded his head in response and went to sit back down on the couch, with Erin following suit.

"What do we tell Voight?"

"We? That's funny, I don't remember you knocking me up." Jay scoffed at Erin's sarcastic remark, but she only laughed, "In all seriousness though Jay, this is something you're going to need to do alone."

"I know, but maybe you could be there when I tell him- for moral support?" It was funny how threatened Jay was by Voight, because as long as they kept it professional, he had no reason to be; and Erin knew Hank was going to do anything he could to help Jay, as was the rest of Intelligence.

Erin couldn't help but let out a silent laugh, "Sure, whatever you need."

"You hungry? I could make us some breakfast if you want? Or I could go and pick something up- I know you're not too keen on my cooking." He laughed, and Erin chuckled a little bit too.

The sound of Jay's voice tore Erin's attention away from the 8 week old baby in her arms, "No, I think I'll be okay. I left Kelly at my apartment so I should probably get going soon anyway." Jay tensed at the sound of the fireman's name, he never really liked that guy. In Jay's eyes, it seemed Erin was always there for Kelly, but he was never there for her; and he didn't like that. Erin deserved the best, and the best was definitely not Kelly Severide. "Call me when you plan to meet Voight, and I'll meet up with you before, okay?" Standing up from the couch, Erin handed Ava over to Jay, and as soon as she did, the child woke up and was wailing within seconds.

Jay jumped at the opportunity to get Erin to stay longer, "Stay a little longer, for her?" He asked, motioning towards Ava.

Erin huffed, "Fine; but only because this one doesn't want me to go." Without hesitation, Erin reached down and pulled Ava from Jay's arms. She stroked Ava's soft baby cheek and gently rocked her. "Can you go and make me a bottle for her, Jay?" She asked quietly, still tracing her fingers along the child's face.

Moments later, Jay came back from the kitchen, bottle in hand. After handing Erin the bottle he sat back down next to her. "Halstead what the hell is this?"

Jay looked at her, confused, "I thought you asked for a bottle?" He said, brows furrowed.

Erin held up the bottle in front of him, "There's way too much water in here, Jay! And the formula isn't even dissolved all of way. Not to mention it's cold. We can't feed this to her." Erin scoffed, "Follow me; let me show you how to make a bottle."

After Erin had gotten up from the couch, Jay sat there a moment longer, "I guess that explains why she wouldn't drink it earlier." He said to himself, quiet enough for Erin not to hear.

By the time Jay had walked into the kitchen, Erin already had the bottle heated up. "Okay so here's the deal, every 2 ounces of water gets one scoop of formula. Each of these lines is one ounce. You got that?" She looked Jay into his eyes and once he nodded, she continued, "She's still really little, and isn't gonna eat that much, so 2 ounces should be just fine for her. Heat the water up for about 15 seconds and then put the formula in. Shake it up until all of the formula is dissolved, and there you go; all done."

Jay watched intently as Erin made the bottle the right way. "How'd you know all that?" He asked, following Erin, who was now feeding Ava a correctly made bottle, out of the kitchen.

"I read the directions on the can, genius."

The partners spent the rest of the day learning how to care for an 8 week old baby. They'd ordered pizza for lunch, and searched the internet for a cheap crib that would last until Jay could get a nicer one.

It was around 3pm when Erin's phone began to ring. She quickly jumped from the couch to silence it, in fear of waking the sleeping Ava. "Lindsay." She said sharply, "Oh, hey Voight…. No I'm at Halstead's… I'll probably be here awhile. Jay actually has something he needs to tell you, so if you'd swing by whenever you have a chance… Great, bye." After hanging up the phone, Erin retreated to her place on the couch next to her partner. "Voight's on his way, but I think he's thinking you're about to tell him you broke the rules; so watch out." She said casually before taking a swig of her beer.

Hank Voight was already on his way to kill Jay before he'd even gotten off the phone with Erin. "One request, and the kid couldn't even do that. He's a dead man. I don't do in house romances, especially ones involving Erin." Voight shook his head in disbelief and raced over to Jay's apartment; sirens and all.

Shortly after Erin had hung up with Voight, Ava woke up again. Neither Jay nor Erin were able to get her back to sleep, so they decided to get to know her a little better. The three of them sat on the floor and played, awaiting Voight's arrival. It was the first time either of them really looked at her. Her eyes were a sea green, just like her father, and though she didn't have much hair, it was clear that eventually it would turn into a golden brown shade.

Hank angrily stomped up the stairs of Jay's apartment. Once in front of the door he was looking for, he pounded hard. "Halstead open up! I hear you've got something to tell me!" He screamed through the closed door. He could hear feet shuffling inside and noticed the shadow approaching the door. As soon as the door was open he pushed past Jay and marched inside the apartment. "I told you to stay away from her!" Voight shouted, pointing a finger towards Jay. In the midst of his outburst, he failed to notice the crying baby in the background and proceeded to corner Halstead. "I don't approve of in house romances, I thought I made myself clear." He continued, and Jay was not about to be the one to interrupt, seeing the pure anger in his boss's eyes.

It was Erin who had decided it was enough, "Hank!" She yelled, causing Voight to turn around and finally take in the situation- Ava. "We haven't done anything! That's not what he has to tell you." She knew he'd jumped to the conclusion that she and Jay had slept together, but she didn't imagine him to be so livid. She could have sworn she saw smoke coming out of his ears.

Voight looked at Erin with a startled look on his face before transferring his gaze to Jay, who still looked scared out of his mind. "Well, spit it out." His voice was calmer, but Jay was still frozen on the spot. As Erin was standing closest to the letter, she picked it up and handed it to her father figure.

After skimming the letter, Hank looked back at Jay, "What do you need? A few days off?" This was a side of Hank Voight Jay had never seen before. Erin wasn't surprised though, she, on the other hand grew up with this side of Voight.

Jay's voice was small when he spoke, "Yeah, that'd be great, actually. Some time to figure this out would be nice."

Voight nodded his head in approval, "Erin? You too?"

Before Erin made her decision, she looked over to Jay who was giving her a look of plea, "If it's okay- he's my partner. I need to have his back." Jay sighed in relief when the words came out of her mouth, and mouthed a 'thank you' to her.

"Alright then, I expect both of you back at work next Thursday; that gives you a week to get this situation straightened out. Now, let me meet the newest member of Intelligence." Voight finished, extending his arms towards Erin.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Two chapters in one day? I guess I just really enjoy writing this story. I have big plans for it! You can probably expect another chapter tomorrow also! I really want to write a Christmas chapter, but I don't want it to be for a while, but I want it up before Christmas, so this story is going to be my main priority for a while. Be on the lookout for new chapters regularly and don't forget to review! Thanks, Mary :)**

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><p>Erin left Jay's soon after Voight did, "Call me if you need anything." She had told him on her way out.<p>

It was a pretty exhausting day for her and she was excited to get home and crawl into bed. After arriving home, she reached for her keys and unlocked her door. She was shocked when she saw Kelly sitting on her couch, casually drinking a beer. It'd ben nearly twelve hours since she left, she thought he'd pick up the hint and leave also.

"Hey," She said questioningly as she waltzed towards him.

"Oh, hey! I don't have shift until tomorrow morning, I figured it'd be okay if I just hung out here. I didn't think you'd be gone so long." Erin only nodded and sat down next to him, stealing his beer in the process. "What's up with your partner?"

Erin rolled her eyes and shook her head, "He's a dad; some girl he hooked up with a while back dropped off a baby at his front door. He's flustered."

"And you were needed because?"

That question received a glare from Erin, "Because he's my partner. He didn't know what to do." Standing up from the couch, she set Kelly's beer on the coffee table and made her way towards her bedroom. She really didn't like all these questions coming from Kelly. Of course the source of all these questions was the jealousy he felt, but in all honesty, she didn't think he had the right.

Kelly followed Erin into the bedroom, "Sorry, I just missed you today. It's the first day that we both had off in a while, and we didn't get to spend it together."

Erin turned to face him and crossed her arms. "Okay, but I don't need all these accusations Kelly; I care about him, and there's never going to be a time where I don't." She ran her fingers through her hair in frustration, "If you can't accept that, I'm not sure we can do this anymore."

"No, I can accept that; I don't want this to end." He said as he advanced towards her. When he was standing right in front of her he took her hands in his and pulled them up to his lips. "I'll let it go."

"Good." Erin simply said before wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him. They stumbled towards the bed, removing clothes in the process.

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><p>Erin's phone went off at 2am that night, she blindly reached for it and answered it.<p>

"Hello?" She spoke into the phone, in an extra raspy voice.

"Hey, you told me to call if I needed anything." Jay's voice was shaky and distressed, and he let out a sigh before continuing, "I know it's late but, she won't stop crying. I need help."

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><p>For the second time in the past 24 hours, Erin was driving to Jay's apartment. The second she stepped out of the elevator, she could hear Ava's faint cries. She let herself into Jay's apartment and followed the sound to the bedroom. Jay relaxed immediately when he saw Erin. "Thank you." He said gratefully, and handed Ava over to her.<p>

"Mhm, what have you tried?" Erin asked as she started to sooth the crying infant.

"I changed her, fed her, and burped her. She won't stop, Erin."

"Go out into the living room, I'll be right there." After Jay left the room, Erin continued to rock Ava, "Shhhh," She said as she gently stroked her cheek. Ava had already stopped crying and Erin noticed she was struggling to keep her eyes open. Only minutes later was Ava asleep.

Erin walked out of Jay's bedroom wearing one of his shirts, he gave her a confused look, "That's my shirt."

Erin looked down at what she was wearing, "Yeah, I gave mine to Ava to sleep with. I think a woman's scent might help her sleep." She walked towards Jay and sat down next to him.

"Thanks for being here today."

She smiled and gave him a knowing look, "That's why you have backup, right?" She said with a wink.

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><p>Jay and Erin spent the rest of the week getting prepared for when they had to return to work. Considering the size of Jay's apartment, they were limited to the furniture they bought for Ava. The crib Erin picked out fit perfectly in Jay's bedroom, and they found a changing table that was small enough to keep in the living room. Erin also had a field day with outfits that they knew she'd grow out of in weeks, but couldn't not fall in love with.<p>

They were able to find a daycare that's open late, and a nanny for the weekends or when Jay had to work extra late. He didn't want to be one of those parents that let someone else raise their kid, but he didn't really have a choice. Chicago's criminals don't run on a nine to five schedule. He would, however, do whatever possible in order to spend as much time with Ava as possible.

Jay really appreciated Erin being around for him, and it was a struggle to get Ava away from her, for both girls. But at the end of each day spent together, Erin went home to Severide, much to Jay's disappointment.

On the other end, Kelly was getting more and more irritated with Erin spending so much time with Jay and his baby; but kept his mouth shut. He had a good thing going on with her and he didn't want to ruin it. He didn't say anything when he rolled over in bed that night to be met with cold sheets, or when she cancelled on drinks because she was "crib shopping", or waking up to find her wearing Jay Halstead's t-shirt. While he understood that Jay was her best friend, his fuse was getting shorter by the minute.

On Wednesday night, Kelly pulled out his phone and dialed Erin's number, she picked up after a few rings. "Hey! I thought you'd maybe want to come over for a bit, I haven't seen you much this week."

"_I'd love to, but I already have plans with Jay and Ava. We go back to work tomorrow and Jay wanted to go out and have a 'last supper' kind of thing. How about tomorrow night?"_

Kelly sighed heavily, "Sure, sounds great!" He hoped that Erin couldn't sense the fakeness in his voice.

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><p>Jay opened the door to the familiar Italian restaurant with Ava on his hip, "There's gonna be 3- well, 2 and a baby" He told the hostess while playing with Ava's fingers.<p>

He followed the hostess to a table and denied when asked if he wanted a high chair. Erin was late, but that was a usual occurrence for her so he wasn't worried. He tried to ignore all the stares coming his way from the various waitresses. Why did women find a man with a baby so attractive?

While playing peek-a-boo with Ava, he noticed his phone buzz, it was a text from Erin. "_Meeting with Bunny went late, be there in 5." _It read.

Jay took that as a cue to get their waitress's attention. He knew that when she said it 'went late' it meant it was bad, so he decided to order her some alcohol, "She's gonna want a whiskey, neat" He said pointing to Erin's empty chair, "And If I could get a coke, please."

"Sure." The chipper waitress said before walking away to get their drinks.

Seconds later, he saw Erin prance through the door looking flustered form her meeting with Bunny. She scanned the restaurant for Jay, and when she noticed him made her way to the table. Ava eyes beamed with excitement as she saw Erin approach them, and started to squirm on Jay's leg. Erin picked her up as soon as she was in arms reach and kissed her nose before sitting down at the table opposite Jay. "I ordered you a whiskey, figured your meeting with Bunny didn't go so well." He said when she'd composed herself.

Erin let out a sigh, "Thanks, and you're right; it went horribly." Putting her attention back on the baby she holding she spoke again, "But it's all better now that I get to see my precious girl, isn't that right?" Ava cooed in response and Jay smiled at the interaction between the two.

When the waitress, who seemed down to see that Erin had arrived, returned with their drinks, Erin quickly downed her glass of whiskey, and ordered a glass of water to accompany her meal. "Are you guys ready to order?" She asked, which caused Jay and Erin to exchange a glance; silently asking if the other was ready.

"Uh, yeah; we are." Jay said after a little bit of hesitation, "I'm going to get a small pizza with olives, peperoni, and pineapple. And she'll have the chicken parmesan." Jay didn't realize he'd ordered for Erin until after the waitress had walked away.

He thought Erin would be mad, but she just scoffed then gave him a smile, "Thanks. How'd you know?"

"We've been to dinner together before, Erin. You get chicken parm every time!"

"I do not! I've gotten-" Erin had to pause for a second, Jay was actually right. She really was that predictable. "Fine, I guess I do get that every time." She said in defeat.

Apart from Jay and Erin, the little Italian restaurant was pretty empty, and unbeknownst to them, the staff had a bet of their own going on- Whether or not Jay and Erin were a couple. The servers were observing every one of their interactions to find out. It seemed as if every time something happened to prove their relationship, they did something very un-couple like. Amelia (Jay and Erin's server) thought she'd solved the mystery when Jay ordered for Erin, but after seeing Erin's reaction, she thought otherwise. The case was put to rest, however, when Erin received a phone call half way through their meal. She walked outside to take the call, and when she came back in she briskly asked for a to-go box and gave Jay some money to pay- which he automatically denied.

"Kelly's drunk out of his mind at Molly's. That was Gabby, she needs be to go and get him. I guess he's a little upset that we haven't been spending much time together." Jay couldn't help but feel a little guilty, but he knew he shouldn't.

"You sure you don't want me to go with you? I know how he gets when he's drunk." Jay asked with raised eyebrows as Erin put on her coat.

Erin shook her head, "No, I'll be fine. You," she said kissing Ava's forehead, "focus on getting this one home. Bye baby. Bye Jay, thanks for dinner." Luckily, Ava was asleep and couldn't sense Erin's going.

"Bye." Jay said sadly as he watched Erin walk away. As Ava began to stir and realize Erin was no longer there, she started to cry, so Jay quickly asked for the bill so he could get her home before she caused a scene.

"Miss her mommy?" Amelia asked as she returned with Jay's credit card.

"Who Erin? Yeah, she does." Jay said while signing the credit card slip

"Why'd she leave so abruptly?" She asked, prying for more details to confirm their relationship status so she would win the bet.

Jay furrowed his brows at her prying, and cleared his throat, "She had to go and pick up her drunk ass of a boyfriend." He didn't say another word as he collected Ava's things and went home.

Amelia sighed, considering she'd lost the bet, and Jay's sad tone didn't help. It was obvious to her that Jay felt something for the girl he'd had dinner with. Which is why she decided to keep the information to herself- not because she'd lost the bet, but because she didn't feel right sharing that information. She went back to her coworkers and told them she wasn't sure, and the subject was quickly forgotten, but Amelia would never forget the look she saw in Jay's eyes when he had to tell her the girl of his dreams went to go and meet another guy.


	4. Chapter 4

It had been almost a month since Jay had found Ava on his doorstep, and he was finally starting to get the hang of things. Thankfully, Intelligence hadn't had any vital cases lately, and the team was usually free to go before by 6pm on most nights. Erin had been a tremendous help for Jay. Whenever Erin was around, Ava refused to go to anyone else. When Erin's scent began to disappear from the shirt she'd given Ava on her first night, she went ballistic; which ended up with Erin replacing the shirt with another. It became somewhat of a routine for Erin to drop by and put Ava to bed when she didn't have plans with Severide, and drop off a new shirt for Ava. Though she'd usually forget to bring a new shirt for herself and go home in one of Jay's.

Erin and Kelly's relationship had been strained since the night he got wasted at Molly's, but neither really wanted to give up on it quite yet. He'd stop sleeping over as often, and they'd probably only seen each other about ten times in the past month. Kelly was a bomb ready to explode, he didn't know how much longer he'd be able to accept Erin playing house with Jay.

Ava was one happy little girl. Jay had brought her to the district numerous times and everyone was in love with her, including random uniforms Jay had never even met. She was the talk of the station.

Intelligence finally had their first major case after weeks of simple drug busts. There were rumors that a major toy company was smuggling heroin in from Jamaica inside their stuffed animals. They didn't know what parts of the company were involved, and they had no idea who was leading it, but they were going to find out.

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><p>Jay was on a stakeout with Atwater when he received a phone call from Ava's daycare. Apparently she had a fever and a runny nose and he had to go and pick her up immediately. It was the middle of the day and his part time nanny was in school; he couldn't just up and leave the stakeout, so he radioed into Erin and asked her to go and pick up Ava.<p>

While Jay and Atwater were on their stakeout, the rest of Intelligence were searching for any other leads, with no luck whatsoever, so Erin didn't really see a problem in leaving to go and get Ava. She pulled into the daycare parking lot and moved the car seat she keeps for Ava from the trunk to the back seat so she wouldn't need to worry about it while carrying a sick baby.

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><p>Upon walking into the daycare, Erin could hear Ava crying, but she didn't know where she was. As she strolled over to the front desk, her eyes continued to search for her upset little girl. "Hi, my name is Erin Lindsay. I'm here to pick up Ava Halstead; I work with her dad." Erin spoke politely. She'd never had to pick Ava up, it was always Jay.<p>

"Are you a parent or legal guardian?" The 20-something girl at the desk asked without looking up from her computer.

Erin was annoyed with the way this young girl was speaking, "Well no, but her dad-"

"I'm sorry, unless you're a legal guardian, I'm not allowed to let you take a child from the facility." The girl interrupted, finally looking Erin in the eyes.

She was about to flash her badge when Ava's cries became clearer and the door to the room she was in opened a crack. A head peeked out of the room, "Mel can you run to the 3 and 4 room and grab me a wet cloth, Ava just spit up everywhere." The floating head spoke, stopping Erin from having an outburst as the young woman sitting in front of her walked away; presumably to get the towel.

Though hearing Ava's name, Erin whipped her head towards the door and she noticed the girl who had opened the door was also carrying Ava. When the woman, now known as 'Mel' returned with the wet cloth, the door opened wider, giving Ava a peek of Erin. The infant instantly started squirming and screaming in her teacher's arms to get Erin's attention. The woman who was holding Ava gave Erin a questioning look, "Oh hi, has anyone helped you out?" she asked. Mel mumbled something into her ear before she continued, "Erin Lindsay? You're the emergency contact for this little stinker, is that right?" This woman was much kinder than Mel and gladly handed Ava over to her after Erin nodded. "I think it's just a cold, but we don't want any of the other children to catch it."

"Great, thank you. Her dad was on a stakeout; we're in the process of shutting down a major drug cartel." Erin explained. "Also, the other girl-Mel- was it? I think she needs a little more training on how to treat your paying clients." She said with a glare as she collected the rest of Ava's things and waltzed out the door.

Erin decided she should just take Ava over to her place so she could get comfy instead of hauling her to the district, so she sent Voight a quick text letting him know that she wouldn't be coming back to work, and sent Halstead a text telling him to swing by her place after work.

Jay showed up to Erin's late that night, around 11pm. Erin had been taking care of Ava all day, and was glad the young one had finally let sleep takeover. "Hey, how's she doin'?" Jay asked as he took off his coat.

"Better, but she's still got a temp of 101 and her nose has been running all day. I gave her a warm bath a few hours ago and some Motrin, which helped the fever a little bit. She just fell asleep about 25 minutes ago." Erin reported, running her hands through her hair.

"How about you? Have you eaten today?" Jay knew how stressful it was taking care of Ava all day, and figured it was probably at least twice as hard considering she was sick.

Erin shook her head no, "Nope, didn't have the chance."

"Do you want Chinese? I'll call it in now." Jay told her before waiting for her to answer his initial question.

Forty-five minutes later, Jay and Erin were sat on Erin's couch watching the most recent Blackhawks game Erin had recorded. When Jay sneezed Erin froze, "You better not be sick Halstead." She warned. Jay shrugged off the comment and continued watching the game.

Neither wanted to move the finally peaceful Ava, so Erin kept her that night, and Jay went home. The following morning, Erin was exhausted because Ava had woken up several times the night before. Ava's fever was down, but she still seemed sick to Erin. The team had solved the case the night before, so Voight gave everyone the day off. While Erin was glad that she didn't have to go to work today, a part of her was upset that wasn't apart in solving the case because she was taking care of someone else's kid. She drove to Jay's in silence, other than a small sound that would come Ava every so often.

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><p>When Erin and Ava got to Jay's place around noon, Jay was nowhere to be found. She searched the apartment for a few minutes before Ava started to stir from her slumber. She'd only been asleep for about 5 minutes, and Erin wasn't ready for her to wake up yet. She unfastened the straps in Ava's car seat and walked her into Jay's bedroom to put her in her crib. Walking into the bedroom, she found Jay still asleep, but not well. After placing Ava in her crib, Erin made her way to Jay to wake him up and let him know she was there, but he didn't react. His breathing was heavy and he was sweating, "Great." Erin whispered to herself after feeling his forehead; he was burning up. Whatever Ava had, she had seemingly passed onto Jay.<p>

Erin hung out at Jay's until Jay woke up, which thankfully happened quickly. He slugged out of his bedroom shirtless and Erin couldn't stop herself from staring at his abs that were glistening with a thin layer of sweat. "Thanks for taking care of Ava," He said with a stuffed up voice before sneezing. He was too out of it to notice where Erin's current gaze was focused. "I woke up in the middle of the night with a fever, I took some NyQuil, and it knocked me out hard."

"Jay you know it's no problem. Glad you solved the case." Jay thought he sensed a hint of annoyance or anger in her voice, but put it to rest-saying it was just the medicine. "You shouldn't be up," Erin said handing him a glass of water and some Tylenol, "go back to bed. I'll take care of Ava." She ushered him back towards his bedroom, and tried to ignore the electricity she felt when she placed her hands on his back.

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><p>"Where the hell is it?" Erin muttered to herself as she emptied the contents of Ava's diaper bag in search of her favorite blanket. "Damn it." She picked up Ava, who was sick and sad and only wanted her blanky, and made her way into Jay's bedroom. Jay woke up hearing Ava's cries, "Jay I need you get up and get dressed. I forgot Ava's blanket at my apartment, you know how she gets without it."<p>

Jay didn't want to get out of bed, "Go without me, I'll be fine." He mumbled, turning on his side to attempt sleep once again.

"Halstead get your ass up right now!" Erin scolded, which caused Jay to groggily get out of bed.

After loading Jay and Ava into her car, the three were on route to Erin's. Jay rested his read against the window, the cold felt good on his hot skin.

When they got to Erin's, Jay walked right into Erin's bedroom and crashed. Erin quickly found Ava's blanket and rocked her to sleep. Truthfully, she was starting to feel sick as well. She popped a couple Tylenol, in attempt to stop the virus before it started.

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><p>Sitting on her couch and looking Ava, Erin really started to think about her current predicament. She loved Ava, so much; but she couldn't help but fear that one day she'd ask about her mom, and Erin didn't want to break the news to her. Everywhere they went people thought she was Erin's daughter. Some even going as far as saying, "She looks just like you." Or "She's got her mommy's dimples." And the more she thought about it, the more she actually did want to be Ava's mom. She couldn't deny what she felt for Jay, but she didn't know how they could ever work with Voight. The reaction he'd had before he even knew anything really frightened Erin. Then, there was Kelly, he'd been so patient with her these past few weeks. She hadn't exactly been the best girlfriend to him, yet he stuck around. Erin really didn't know the exact reason she was with Kelly, apart from controlling her attraction to her partner.<p>

Before Erin could travel deeper into her thoughts, there was a knocking at her door. She carefully stood up with Ava in her arms and traveled the short distance to her door before opening it. Kelly's face changed drastically when Erin opened the door and he found her holding the infant. "Kelly. Hi" Erin said, she hadn't been expecting him.

"Hey, Erin. Did you get pregnant and not tell me?" Kelly said, trying to change the mood, the tension between them was thick.

Erin let out a small chuckle, "Jay and Ava are sick, do you want to come in?"

Severide nodded, "Yeah. Maybe we could hang out a bit, y'know maybe just watch TV or something? I miss you."

"Sure." She said, giving him a smile.

While Kelly grabbed a beer and got himself comfortable on Erin's couch, Erin went and put Ava in the portable crib she had set up in her room.

After Erin sat down next to him, Kelly wrapped his arm around her and went in for a kiss, but Erin turned her head so he couldn't. "You don't want this, I think I'm already catching it." Kelly nodded and continued watching TV.

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><p>The next hour went by dreadfully long. Other than occasional small talk, such as work, Erin and Kelly sat in an extremely awkward silence and watched some random adult cartoon that Kelly was into. Erin disliked adult cartoons, she thought they were immature and stupid, but her mind was elsewhere. She hardly noticed Jay come out of her bedroom wearing only boxers, but Kelly had noticed right away, and he was furious.<p>

"What time is it?" Jay asked as he squinted, his eyes adjusting to the brightly lit living room. He didn't register Kelly standing from his seat on the couch and storming out of Erin's apartment, with Erin following shortly after. Jay only stood in the now empty living room for a second before shrugging and walking off to use the bathroom, which he'd originally planned on doing and went back to bed.

"Kelly!" Erin called, she'd chased Kelly all the way to stairwell, yet he hadn't responded to any of his calls. "Kelly, he's sick. I left Ava's blanket here and he fell asleep in the bed. I don't see why you're freaking out!" She screamed at him, with his back still to her. Both Erin and Kelly knew this would probably be the end.

Kelly stopped dead in his tracks, "You don't see why I'm upset?_ I'm_ your boyfriend, Erin!" he yelled. "I'm your boyfriend and I've seen you less than 10 times in an entire month. And I'm done. I can't go on living anymore while my girlfriend is out with some other dude!" Erin had never seen Kelly this upset before, "So you have a choice to make, Erin. You can either lose me and continue playing house with your partner and his kid, or you can start spending more time with me- your boyfriend."

She looked at him, disheveled. She knew that Jay was what she really wanted, but she was so, so scared to after him and have it not work out. In the back of her head, she knew before the words left her lips what her decision would be, "Him. I'm always going to pick Jay." Erin trembled, tears welling in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Kelly." With that, she left Kelly alone in the stairwell of her apartment building. The tears stayed put until she'd turned her back to him, but they fell as soon as she was alone.

Erin pulled herself together on the short walk back to her apartment. She knew that her relationship with Kelly wasn't going to last, but she wished they'd ended on better terms. Upon reentering her apartment, she walked into the bedroom. Quickly changing from jeans to sweats, she curled into bed beside Jay and instantly knew she'd made the right choice. Erin, Jay, and Ava slept through the rest of the night undisturbed.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Just realized I forgot to mention that I got the idea for the case in the last chapter from ABC's Castle; thanks Castle! I'd also really like to thank Jayne and Emily for being amazing and betaing for me, couldn't do it without your support guys. Anyway, I think you guys are really going to like this chapter! And my heart flutters every time I get a new review, so keep 'em coming!**

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><p><em>Don't go; we need you, Erin. <em>The words repeated in Erin's head like a broken record. Jay had said those six little words to her in her sleep the night he was sick, and Erin didn't know what they meant. She knew he probably didn't remember saying them, hell he woke up in her bed the next morning and had no clue as to how he got there.

That was three weeks ago.

Jay had noticed Erin's recent change in mood. She hadn't been spending as much time with him and Ava since around the time they were ill. He figured it was probably because of Severide so he kept his mouth shut. Jay desperately wanted to tell her how he felt, wanted to tell her to ditch the firefighter and give them a chance. He knew she wouldn't though. He knew that she wouldn't go behind Voight's back, and there was definitely no hope in trying to get Voight to even toy with the idea of him and Erin.

He wouldn't have said anything at all if it weren't for Ava. God, Ava missed her. She'd been having trouble sleeping as Erin hadn't been by to drop off a fresh shirt with her scent on it. "Halloween's next week. You wanna go trick or treating with me and Ava?" Jay asked her as they prepared to leave for the day.

Erin furrowed her brows, "Jay she's four months old, I don't think she really gets the point." She said with a hint of a laugh.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean she isn't gonna look cute in the pumpkin costume I bought."

"A pumpkin? Jay that's so generic." She scoffed, "I'll go, but I'm going to buy her a much cuter costume." That was all she said before retreating back to her car.

Jay smirked to himself as she walked away. There was no pumpkin costume.

It was holidays like Halloween when the members of Intelligence were thankful they were detectives and no longer had to be on patrol, like Roman and Burgess. While Jay and Erin were on their way out, they ran into the two uniforms, who were in the process of pulling a kid out of the back of their patrol car; he was caught egging someone's home. "Have fun guys!" Jay called out behind them with a grin. Erin tried to succumb her laughter and gave him a light punch on his shoulder.

"Oh we will," Burgess said, giving her perp a devilish grin, "Take tons of pictures of Ava for us!" She then yelled.

Jay gave her a thumbs up in response before getting into the passenger side of Erin's car. They went and picked up Ava from daycare, where they were having a special Halloween party. None of the younger kids were dressed up though, it was mainly for the preschool aged children. While Jay signed Ava out at the front desk, Erin went to her classroom to go retrieve Ava. Ava squealed in delight when she saw Erin, and Erin then realized how her avoiding of Jay was affecting Ava.

Arriving at Jay's place, Erin popped her trunk to grab the costume she bought for Ava while Jay took Ava inside to shield her from the cold.

"She looks like an elephant ate her." Jay stated, looking at his daughter in the fluffy elephant costume.

"Come on, she looks adorable!" Erin chimed, fixing the trunk so it wasn't in Ava's eyes. "You like it Ava, don't you? Tell your daddy to stop fussing." She said looking into Ava's eyes. Ava smiled at Erin's tone and let out a baby giggle. "Besides, it'll keep her warm."

They decided to go trick or treating in Voight's neighborhood, considering both Erin and Jay lived in apartments and apartment complexes weren't the most fun to go trick or treating in. After hitting a few houses, the weather started to get colder, and in search of warmth Erin looped her left arm through Jay's right. It felt right for the both of them, and to all the other people trick or treating, they looked like any average mother and father taking their baby out for Halloween.

When Ava started to fuss, Erin and Jay decided to take home. Erin took her out of the stroller and pat her back to keep her calm until they made it to the car, parked in Voight's driveway. Voight wasn't at home yet, much to Erin and Jay's delight. He probably wouldn't have been happy the physical contact they were sharing.

Once Erin had put Ava to bed, she walked out into the living room to join Jay, who was in the process of going through Ava's candy. "Ooh, a Kit Kat!" Erin beamed, grabbing the chocolate that Jay had just pulled from Ava's pumpkin full of candy.

Erin sat next to Jay, their knees barely touching, and after eating almost half of the candy they'd collected, a comfortable silence filled the air. "I'm glad I came tonight. I didn't realize how much I missed you guys." Erin said after a while.

"You shouldn't need to miss us, Er. No one asked you to go away." Jay replied, turning his body to face her.

Erin bit her lip, she wasn't sure if she wanted to bring up what he said. Taking a deep breath, she braced herself for the conversation they were about to have. "You said something, when you were sick."

"When I was sick? Erin that was like a month ago! Is that why you've been so distant? What did I say?" Jay's voice shook, afraid he'd told her he loved her or something stupid.

Erin tried to swallow the lump in her throat, she was struggling to find the words. "I know it was a while ago, but you know me, always running."

Jay took her hands in his, "Erin, what did I say?"

"You told me not to go, that you, well 'we' need me. And I got scared. Scared because I know I'm not her mother. I'm not her mom Jay, and I'm getting too attached; we both are. What happens when Anna comes back, and you don't need me anymore?"

At Erin's words, Jay let out a breath of relief, and held her hands tighter, "Erin. We will always need you. You will always be my partner, and have you not noticed how much that little girl loves you? You're the closest thing she's ever gonna get to a mom. Anna's never coming back, she signed away her rights; you saw the paperwork." He desperately tried to reassure her. "Don't run, okay?"

Erin's eyes fluttered, trying to stop the tears that were threatening to fall. "Okay."

She wanted to tell him that she broke up with Kelly, but it didn't feel like the right time.

* * *

><p>Things seemed to return back to normal after that. Erin began spending more time with Ava, but was still timid around Jay. Jay was still out of the know regarding her breakup, and Jay came to the conclusion that that's why she acting the way she was.<p>

"What are you doing for Thanksgiving?" Erin asked Jay on the way to go visit a witness.

"Crap, I haven't even thought about that. I usually go the Corson's, but I don't think Allie would be too happy showing up with some other girl's baby." He replied. He didn't exactly have a definition for his relationship with Allie. They shacked up whenever she was in town, but that pretty much summed it up. Obviously, her parents loved him and hoped that one day Jay and Allie would 'realize they were destined' and get back together. Allie secretly hoped the same, but Jay knew if he was 'destined' with anyone, it was Erin. Sure, he and Allie had fun when they were together, but to Jay, it was nothing more.

"Antonio and I are going to Voight's, do you want to bring Ava and come too? He's actually a pretty great cook." He was, while Voight was hardcore on the surface, he had a lot of secret softy talents, cooking was one of them, and he also really cherished his holidays. Holidays were family time, and Voight valued family.

"You sure he won't mind?" Jay asked.

"Yeah, you're family." Erin told him, "And I think he really wants to see Ava again." She finished with a laugh.

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><p>Thanksgiving Day rolled around quite quickly, and before she knew it Erin was mashing potatoes in Voight's kitchen with Justin. Antonio arrived first, and he'd brought a pumpkin pie with him. He greeted Erin and Voight and offered to give a helping hand, but they refused. Justin joined him in the living room minutes later with a beer for him. The men made small talk, and waited for dinner to be ready.<p>

Jay walked up the steps to Voight's house, the last time he was here it wasn't the best experience, considering Voight had gone missing. He knocked on the front door and set Ava's car seat down on the porch, waiting for someone to let him in. Justin answered the door and gave him a cold stare before letting him inside. Justin still didn't like Jay, even though Erin had made it clear that he wasn't her boyfriend.

Once inside, Erin emerged from the kitchen, "There she is!" She cheered, rushing to free Ava from her car seat. "Hi peanut," she said, giving Ava an eskimo kiss. Peanut was a nickname they started calling her on Halloween, in reference to Jay's comment about how it looked like she was eaten by the elephant. It was name reserved for Jay and Erin only.

"Hello to you too." Jay said, feigning hurt that she didn't acknowledge his presence.

"Hey Halstead. Food's almost ready, Antonio's in the living room with Justin. You can join them if you want." Her attention was back on Ava as she carried her into the kitchen to say hi to Voight.

Jay didn't want to go and have an awkward conversation with Justin Voight, so instead he followed Erin into the kitchen. "Halstead, glad you could make it." Voight said when Jay walked into the kitchen.

Apart from when he met Ava, this was the first time Jay saw Voight so calm. "Thanks for having me." Jay quaked nervously.

"You can relax, Jay. I'm not going to bite you on Thanksgiving." Voight demanded, handing Ava over to Jay so he could finish dinner. "Erin, I've got it from here. Now get out my kitchen, all of you."

"Where's your fireman?" Jay asked Erin on their way to meet up with Dawson and Justin in the other room.

"I don't know. We broke up." She replied shortly as they arrived in the living room.

Jay stopped walking and looked at her, the corners of his mouth rising ever so slightly as he watched her sit down next to Antonio and play with his daughter.

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><p>Dinner went smoothly. Conversation ranged from their latest case, to Justin and Olive, to Ava. Jay knew better than to bring Erin's relationship status up in front of Voight, so he waited until they were both on their way out the door before pushing it any further. "You and Severide, done?" He asked while she buckled Ava up in her car seat.<p>

"Yup, for almost 2 months now." She said, grabbing her keys and purse. She bent down to pick up Ava's car seat. She didn't want to say bye until the last possible second. They said their goodbyes and thank-yous to Voight and made their way to Jay's car.

Jay was speechless after learning the news that she'd been single for so long and didn't have a clue. He silently followed Erin to his car and after she kissed Ava goodbye and closed the car door he pushed her up against it. "You're single?" He whispered, his face only inches from hers.

Erin wordlessly nodded, she could feel Jay's hot breath on her skin. She felt his hand travel up her body, stopping at her cheek. Erin leaned into Jay's palm, they stared at each other for a few moments. "Ava's in the car." She told him.

"I know." He said, leaning in closer.

"Voight's probably watching." He leaned in closer.

"I don't care." His lips finally met hers in a soft kiss. Erin moved her hands that were resting at her sides to around Jay's neck. Pulling him closer if possible. There was a fire that ignited inside the both of them as soon as their lips met and neither wanted to breakaway. Their lips moved in sync until Erin had to pull away for air. "We'll see you tomorrow." Jay whispered before releasing her from his hold and walked around his car. Erin was left breathless and wanting more, her fingers involuntarily touched her lips after Jay had driven away.

Erin was right, Voight had been watching. He'd been observing their actions all night. The way Jay took Erin's plate for her, the subtle glances they would share every few minutes. He watched the way Jay pressed Erin against his car and kissed her. And from his kitchen window, he was able to see the huge smile Erin had on her face after he'd gone.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Extra long Christmas chapter for you guy! I am actually blown away with the response to this story and appreciate every single review! Remember, constructive criticism is encouraged, so please give me your honest opinions! Hope y'all like this chapter! :)**

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><p>"Erin, my office." Voight said walking up the stairs to Intelligence the morning after Thanksgiving.<p>

Erin shared a look with Jay, who was sitting across from her, they both knew what this was likely about. Once she entered Voight's office she automatically closed the door behind her, she wasn't sure how ugly this was going to get. "Take a seat." Voight ordered after he sat down himself. Erin did what she was told, but stayed silent; she wasn't about to start admitting to stuff before she was even accused of anything. Besides, she and Jay had only kissed. "You wanna tell me about what happened in my driveway last night or should I call Halstead in here?" Voight asked, demand in his voice.

Erin gave him her best look of confusion, "I buckled Ava into the car and thanked Jay for coming." It wasn't a complete lie; she did thank Jay for coming - with her tongue. "Then he got in his car and drove away." Voight was one of the only people who could tell when she was lying, and she desperately hoped that she could pull this off without him seeing through her act.

"Anything else you have to tell me?" Voight was eyeing her hard, just waiting for the moment she slipped up. Little did she know, Voight already knew the truth.

Making a face, Erin shook her head, "I don't think so." She didn't want to be interrogated any longer.

Voight puckered his lips and bobbed his head, "Okay. Send Halstead in here on your way out."

Erin stood from her chair and walked out of Voight's office. She strutted to Halstead's desk to let him know Voight wanted to see him. "Nothing happened. That's our story, we're sticking with it." She whispered as Jay got up and made his way to Voight's office.

"…And then I got in my car, and got Ava home."

"That's not what Erin told me." Voight said, staring into Jay's eyes. Even though Jay's story was identical to Erin's, he was trying to get Halstead to confess. He pushed harder, "You better tell me the truth, kid."

Jay kept a completely straight face, "I already told you what happened. I don't know what Erin told you, but that's what happened." He insisted, shrugging his shoulders.

Voight let Jay go with no further questions after realizing he wasn't going to fess up, and he and Erin walked on eggshells all day. They hadn't even had a chance to talk about the kiss with each other. The partners decided to meet at Jay's place later that night to discuss what happened that morning and the previous night.

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><p>"Hi peanut!" Erin exclaimed after walking into Jay's place and seeing Ava playing on the floor. She walked over to her and picked her up, "Where's your daddy at?" She asked, pretending Ava could actually give her an answer. Erin scans the apartment in search of Jay, finding him in the kitchen plating the Italian take out he picked up on his way home. "Hey" Erin said when she entered the kitchen.<p>

A smile appeared on Jay's face when he saw her, "Hey you," He said, walking over to her. Stopping right in front of her, Jay leaned down and gave her a chaste kiss. At first, Erin was shocked by his actions, but quickly gave in and kissed him back.

"I could do that forever; but, we need to talk," She said once they parted. "Voight knows. We can deny it all we want; but he knows, Jay." She explained as she bounced Ava on her hip.

Jay went back to plating the food, "Voight thinks he knows about last night," he retorted, turning around with two full plates of food and walked towards the dining table, "And we already to put that to rest."

Erin followed him, "Jay, he's going to be watching you like a hawk. He's had suspicions about us before, and then we weren't even doing anything." Erin spoke, nervousness in her voice.

"Then I guess we'll have to be extra careful." Jay smirked, placing the food on the table before walking up to her and cupping her cheek and kissing her again. "Because now that I've kissed you, I can't imagine not kissing you."

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><p>While Erin was reluctant to going behind Voight's back at first, she now realized how fun it was sneaking around. Work went normally, apart from stolen glances and secret make out sessions in random closets. They would alternate between sleeping at her place or Jay's; mostly her place as it was bigger and had more room for Ava who had just started crawling.<p>

Voight was doing everything he could to find out the truth about Jay and Erin's relationship. Ironically enough, as one of Chicago's best detectives he wasn't having any luck. They seemed to be carrying on perfectly normal. He came to the conclusion that the kiss was a one-time thing, and Erin hadn't let their escapades go on any further. He liked that.

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><p>Christmas was just around the corner and the members of Intelligence were frantically trying to finish the stacks of paperwork that had to be filed before the New Year began. Everyone but Jay, Erin and Voight had gone for the night. "You ready to go, babe?" Erin's eyes went wide as she realized what she'd just said. They'd been extremely careful these past two weeks, and she'd probably just blown it.<p>

Erin tightly shut her eyes, preparing herself for Voight's wrath, but it never came. As it turns out, Voight had been in an intense phone call when she slipped up and didn't hear her. She let out a sigh of relief before quickly packing up her things and almost literally pulling Jay down the stairs and out the door.

"Nice one," Jay said once they were safely in the car, "You got pretty lucky there, didn't you?" Jay laughed.

Erin glared at him from the driver's seat, "Me? I'm not the one whose ass is gonna kicked when he finds out." She remarked.

"Good point."

Later that night, after Ava was in bed, Jay and Erin were cuddled up on Erin's couch watching a cheesy Christmas movie that was airing on Hallmark. While both of them generally disliked made-for-TV movies, they enjoyed watching them together because they liked to make fun of how bad they were.

"So, what's the plan for Christmas?" Jay asked Erin during a commercial break as he lightly rubbed circles on her arm.

"Same as every year," Erin replied, "I'll probably invite everyone over here we'll eat and do White Elephant. Why, you got other plans?" She joked.

Jay let out a silent chuckle, "Yeah, I was actually planning on going to see my other girlfriend; so I was finding a way to plan out my day."

"Shut up." Said Erin as she slapped his chest with the hand that was resting on it.

Like Erin said she would, she invited everyone and their families over to her apartment for Christmas dinner. Jay and Ava were technically the first to arrive, considering they spent Christmas Eve together and never went home.

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><p>Christmas morning was just the three of them. Between Jay and Erin, Ava probably had over $800 in Christmas presents. Erin went a little bit crazy when buying new outfits. They also bought some necessities that posed as actual presents. Diapers, new pacifiers, bottles, etc. Their gifts for each other were small, but meaningful. Erin cleared some space in her closet, as well as emptying out a few drawers in her dresser for him. Even though they had technically just got together, the only difference between their relationship now and their relationship before Thanksgiving was the title and the kisses. Jay got Erin a coffee mug that said "World's greatest mom" to show how much she meant to Ava, and golden locket with a picture of the three of them inside.<p>

While Christmas shopping, Erin had bought Ava the cutest little red dress for Christmas Day, along with some baby ballet flats and black tights. Though they didn't want it to get dirty, so until more members of the team arrived, Ava was dressed in a onesie with the words "Baby's First Christmas" on it, paired with some candy cane striped leggings. Erin wore a red cashmere sweater that Jay had given her as an early present the night before, and Jay was wearing a simple black button down and slacks.

Voight was the next to get to Erin's. He was holding three separate gifts; one for White Elephant, one for Erin, and surprisingly one for Ava. Justin and Olive spent the morning at his house, and were planning to spend the evening with Olive's friends.

Hank was always the first to arrive at Erin's on Christmas, and it felt strange with Jay and the baby there, but he liked it nonetheless; it was a good strange. He continued to overanalyze every one of Jay and Erin's interactions with each other. At one point when he was sitting with Ava, he swore he heard a giggle come from Erin's mouth. _Erin doesn't giggle, what the hell is going on with those two_? He thought to himself. Once again, Voight found himself digging for answers for the puzzle that was Erin Lindsay and Jay Halstead.

Everybody else seemed to show up in a pack. Since Eva and Diego spent Thanksgiving with Laura, Antonio was able to convince her to let them spend Christmas Day with him, and they could do Christmas Eve with her. Adam and Kim drove together, but didn't enter the threshold together in fear of someone discovering their 'secret' relationship. It was a mystery as to why they were still hiding it, everybody already knew. Erin hoped she and Jay weren't as obvious. Atwater brought his little sister, and Al brought Meredith and Lexi.

Ava was like a brand new puppy. Everybody and their children seemed to gravitate towards her, and she definitely liked all of the attention. It was also a nice break for Jay and Erin, with someone always playing with her, the couple got some time to relax.

It was getting late in the evening, dinner had been eaten hours ago and Ava was already down for the night. The only thing left to finish off the night was the gift exchange. Erin always loved White Elephant, it was always exciting to see what kind of gifts people could come up with.

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><p>Erin may have had one too many glasses of Eggnog, as she was struggling to stand up straight. She gripped onto Jay's t-shirt for support as the adults moved from the dining table to surround the Christmas tree.<p>

Erin flopped onto her couch and pulled Jay down with her. They were sitting extremely close, which didn't go unnoticed by Voight.

Once everyone was settled in front of the tree, it was time for the fun to begin. Before Erin's apartment was filled with people, she'd written down numbers and put them inside a hat for the game, and one by one all of the adults pulled a piece of paper from the hat. All of the kids were hanging out in Erin's bedroom playing with the new gadgets they got for Christmas to shield them in the case anything was rated 'R'.

When pulling numbers, Voight had picked the number 1, so he decided to go for the smallest present under the tree. After unwrapping the small present, Hank was met with several Starbucks gift cards, all with different amounts of money on them. Underneath, there was a post it note with the total amount of value on the cards _$6.37. _ "Wow, one free drink from Starbucks!" He said sarcastically.

Antonio was the next to go, after deciding there was probably something better than $6.37, he grabbed a random present from underneath the tree. "Vodka! Someone knows how to get the party started," He joked.

After Dawson, it was Adam's turn to go. He was the one that brought the vodka, and in the rules Erin drew up, you weren't allowed to take home the same present you brought, and he didn't want free coffee. Being Ruzek, he went for the biggest present, which turned out to be a collection of old VHS tapes, courtesy of his partner. Alvin chuckled when Ruzek cursed to himself under his breath.

Lucky number 4 was Kim, and she decided to steal the vodka from Antonio, making it his turn again. Antonio took another present from underneath the tree, unwrapping an iPad box. The box was too light to actually have an iPad in it, but he hoped that there could possibly be something else inside.

Next up was Jay, and much to his discomfort after picking a new gift from the pile of presents he ended up with a picture of Voight. _Great, another reminder that he's always watching_. Jay thought to himself, while smiling on the outside. Voight laughed at the irony of the situation.

Atwater was next, and after seeing the gifts everyone else had brought, he suddenly found himself wishing he didn't go so far out with his. He did have to give himself some slack though; it was his first Christmas with the team and now he knows for next year. Instead of picking a new gift, Atwater decided to steal Voight's gift cards. A little amount can go a long way.

After Kevin stole his gift cards, Voight stole the vodka from Kim, and Kim picked another present from under the tree. She was shocked when she saw the Tiffany blue box hidden underneath the wrapping paper. Little did she know the box was empty.

A very drunk Erin was next. With her thoughts impaired, her best idea was to go after the picture of Voight, and everybody laughed considering how many pictures of Voight she already had hung around her home. "You're all just jealous!" She slurred when they made fun of her. She was sitting dangerously close to Jay by this point, her legs almost on top of his. "You thought it was a good idea, right b-" Jay cut her off before she was able to speak any further.

"Okay! My turn again." He said, hoping nobody was able to put together what Erin was about to say. No one had. "Sarg, I'm sorry- but I gotta take that vodka from you." Jay said with an apologizing grin.

Voight laughed and reached across the coffee table to give it to him. Even though he'd been watching Erin and Jay's every move, he was sitting quite far away, and didn't hear the end of Erin's sentence. He picked up a rather heavy present from under the tree. After unwrapping it, he discovered the reason it was so heavy was because it was glass. A box of shot glasses that spelled out "Chicago PD", a letter on each glass was revealed. Voight was satisfied with this gift and hoped no one would take it from him.

Finally, it was Al and Meredith's turn. They didn't want the game to end quite yet, so instead of taking the final present from underneath the tree, they stole the item they both agreed held the most value- Voight's shot glasses. Voight reluctantly passed the heavy box around and decided to steal the iPad box, with the same reasoning Antonio thought when he first opened it.

After thinking hard, Antonio decided his best bet was to steal the Starbucks gift cards. There was no way in hell he was about to piss off Alvin Olinsky and steal those shot glasses from him.

The ball was back in Atwater's court. His gift was the only one left under the tree, which forced him to steal vodka Jay had stolen earlier.

Choosing to put the game to rest, Jay snatched the last present. It was a small gift bag, and after pulling out the tissue paper the only thing inside was an envelope. He carefully opened the envelope and gasped when he saw there were 2 tickets to the next Blackhawks game inside. For Jay, it was a successful game of White Elephant. Everyone groaned in jealousy as Jay flaunted the tickets. "Who bought these?" Jay asked as he started to clean up wrapping paper.

"I know a guy." Atwater answered, receiving several reactions from the various people in the room.

* * *

><p>Antonio was the first to leave, it was late, and way passed Diego's bedtime. After Antonio, Atwater and the Olinsky's left together. Ruzek 'left' shortly before Burgess, now leaving only Jay, Erin, and Voight; similar to Thanksgiving.<p>

"Come on Boozy, let's get you to bed." Jay said, leading the wobbly Erin to her room. Voight was in the kitchen, washing dishes.

As Erin tumbled onto her bed she captured Jay's lips with her own. And as much as Jay wanted to continue, he didn't want Voight to walk in on them, "Baby come to bed with me!" Erin whined, as one hand tugged at his shirt to pull him down, and the other traveled south down Jay's body.

"I'll be right back, give me a minute." Jay said, untangling her hands from his body.

* * *

><p>"Are you staying over?" Voight asked when Jay emerged from Erin's bedroom.<p>

Jay hesitantly nodded before saying, "Yeah, it's easier for Ava," He paused, not quite sure if he should continue, "And Erin's drunk- I don't think she should be alone."

Voight pursed his lips, "You really care about her, don't you?"

Just thinking about her made the corners of Jay's mouth travel upward, "She and Ava are pretty much my world." Jay replied.

"You hurt her and your body's gonna be at the bottom of the river." Was all Voight said before walking out of the apartment.

Jay stood motionless in the middle of Erin's apartment, a blank look on his face. Did Voight just give him his approval?

Somewhere in the night, Voight had found out about their relationship. And he saw how happy Erin was, even if she was wasted out of her mind. He'd been watching these past few weeks, and with his suspicions finally confirmed, he'd realized that they've been together this whole time. They'd been together since Thanksgiving and have managed to keep it completely professional at work. Tonight, Voight realized that maybe Erin's happiness was more important than his rules.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Merry Christmas all(Unless you don't celebrate it, if not, happy holidays)! I've had a super busy week, my car broke down, my internet is out, and I've been working like a dog! I can't even remember the last time I got to sleep in past 8 am. This chapter is full of FIRSTS ;) I really think you're gonna like it!**

* * *

><p>Erin woke up with a pounding headache. As her eyes adjusted to the light, she noticed Jay wasn't curled up behind her and Ava wasn't in her crib. She frantically tried to get up to look around but again, she was met with a throbbing pain in her head and fell back onto the bed.<p>

While she cradled her head with her hands, Jay walked in carrying an Aspirin and some water. "Morning sunshine." He said, taking a seat on the edge of the bed, next to her.

"Where's Ava?" Erin asked before popping the pills.

"In her new playpen, playing with the blocks Voight bought her." Erin nodded her head in response. "Speaking of Voight…" He trailed off, awaiting Erin's reaction, "Pretty sure he knows about us." He watched her eyes go wide and grabbed her hand, "Funny thing though- I think he's actually okay with it."

"Okay with it?" Erin raised her eyebrows in confusion. "Voight?"

After Jay had finished telling her what happened the night before, both got up and made their way to the living room, so Erin could say goof morning to Ava and Jay could get some coffee for them. As soon as Ava saw her mama her eyes lit up and she immediately dropped the toy she was playing with. Erin walked towards her and picked her, giving her raspberry kisses all over. "Uh oh, I think someone needs to be changed." She said, feeling Ava's diaper.

Erin laid her down on the couch, as she didn't have the energy to walk to her bedroom for the actual changing table, and grabbed a fresh diaper from the diaper bag a few feet away. "Kiss!" Erin's head instantly snapped up; she wasn't sure if she'd heard right.

"What was that baby? Did you say something?"

"Kiss!" Ava exclaimed again, this time bringing both of her tiny hands up to her lips; giggling slightly.

At this point Erin began to freak out, "Jay! Jay, get in here! Hurry!" She yelled.

Jay stopped staring at the coffee pot and ran out to the living room. "What is it? Is everything okay?" He asked, rushing to the couch.

"Say it again, baby." Erin said when Jay entered the room, her full attention on the infant in front of her.

There was a few seconds of silence and Erin thought she was done for the day. Jay was still confused. Suddenly a little voice filled the room again, "Kiss! Mama, kiss!" Erin reached down and lifted her up, her eyes glistening with unfallen tears of happiness. First she kissed Ava and then she kissed Jay. Erin was beyond grateful for the little family the three of them had become in the past four months. She loved that Ava had called her 'mama', although there was still that hint of insecurity hidden deep inside of her. The fear that one day, Ava's biological mom would come back and want to be a part of her life. And she didn't think she'd be able to handle that.

"What's wrong?" Erin looked up Jay. Damn him, always being able to sense her change of mood. "You're her mom, Erin. No doubt about it." He pulled her into an embrace and kissed the top of her head. "Let's get dressed, we have to go to work." Jay said as he pulled away.

Erin nodded her head again and went to put Ava back in her playpen so she could get ready for work. Before she was able to make it to her bedroom, Jay dragged her body to his and kissed her passionately. "Not gonna lie, I'm a little jealous that she said 'mama' before 'dada'." Jay said once they broke apart.

Erin let a raspy chuckle. "I can't help it if she loves me more." She beamed.

* * *

><p>Work went better than expected. While Erin and Jay were both expecting to be pulled into to have a talk with Voight, he acted as if nothing had happened. The team busted a drug cartel and just as Jay and Erin were packing up for the night, Voight emerged from his office. "Erin, family dinner on Sunday night. Bring your boyfriend." Hank didn't wait for a reply as he zipped up his coat and descended the stairs of Intelligence. Erin and Jay looked at each other, confused. Voight knew Jay the detective, he wanted to get to know Jay the boyfriend.<p>

Come Sunday night, Jay and Erin walked up the steps to Voight's home hand in hand, with Jay carrying Ava's car seat in his other hand. With her free hand, Erin used her key to unlock Voight's door and the three entered the threshold. Their hands unlinked when they saw Voight in order for Erin to give him a hug. "Sir." Jay said, shaking Voight's hand.

Ava started squirming in her car seat, "Mama! Mama!" The three adults in the room gave their attention to the baby in the carrier. Even Voight smiled at the way Erin was taking care of baby Ava.

* * *

><p>"That went well." Jay said once they were in the car. "You think he likes me?" He smirked.<p>

Erin laughed, "Actually, I think he does." Voight had learned a lot about Jay that night; his family, his life before Gabby and Intelligence. Hank was able to see how much he cared about Erin, and how great Erin and Jay worked together as parents.

* * *

><p>"But I don't want to leave her!" Erin whined on New Year's Eve. They'd been invited to a New Year's party at Molly's, and it'd been so long since they'd gone out Jay and Erin decided to go for a few hours. The couple was in Erin's room getting ready for the night, and Ava was already out for the night.<p>

Jay and Ava were practically living with Erin by this point, most of Ava's belongings were being stored at Erin's, and the only time Jay went by his apartment was to pick up more of his things. "She'll be fine. Lexy's gonna be here all night. We have nothing to worry about." Lexy Olinsky offered to spend her New Year's Eve babysitting, she said she 'desperately needed the money' and not to mention how fascinated she was with the 6 month old. Jay opted to give her two hundred dollars if she spent the night. Even though Ava would be asleep from the time she arrived 'til the time they got home, they wanted to make sure Lexy knew how much they appreciated her.

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door. Jay finished adjusting his tie as he made his way to the door. "Hey, Lexy." Jay stated when he opened the door. "Thanks again, we really appreciate it."

"It's no problem," She laughed, "All of my friends are out of town, and after Christmas I'm really needing some extra cash."

"Erin!" Jay called out. "Babe, Lexy's here." He tried again.

Finally, Erin emerged from the bedroom. She was wearing a black and silver sequined dress with an open back and fell just below the knees. "Should we go? I think we should stay here." Erin said once she was face to face with Jay.

"Baby, it's okay." Jay said grabbing her jacket and assisting her with putting it on.

"Okay, just- let me say goodbye one more time!" Erin attempted to go back into the bedroom but Jay stopped her.

"Nope, we gotta go. Thanks Lexy!" He quite literally dragged Erin out of the apartment, and once they were settled in the car, Erin began to relax.

* * *

><p>The closest parking to Molly's was close to three blocks away. Erin huddled into Jay for warmth on the way and he wrapped an arm around her small frame. Upon walking through the doors, the first person Erin saw was Kelly.<em> Great<em>, Erin thought. The last she saw him was when she broke it off, she could already tell tonight was going to be pretty awkward. She noticed Jay point towards the table where their team was sitting. He took hold of her hand and the pair walked over to everyone else.

Kelly downed his fourth shot of the night when he saw Jay Halstead grab hold of Erin's hand. He was jealous beyond belief.

For Jay and Erin, the night was going wonderfully. They were at the perfect point between sober and drunk, and it was 11:57. "One more shot of 2014!" Ruzek yelled as he came back to their table with another round of shots. The team cheered and toasted to a new year and threw back their shots.

11:59.

"Erin! Erin!" A very drunk Kelly came stumbling towards the group, causing Jay to protectively put his hand on Erin's back, and pull her closer to him. "Erin." Kelly stated once he was in front of her, "I'm sorry for being jealous. Let's try again!

The countdown was starting. 10…9…8…7…6…

"Kelly…." Erin trailed off as the countdown continued. 5…4…3…

"C'mon, please?" Kelly begged, a smile plastered on his face. Erin only looked at him, then up to Jay.

2…1! The entire bar erupted in cheers and laughter as everyone kissed their significant other, Erin's being Jay.

Erin smiled into the kiss and didn't notice Kelly storm out of the bar in tears.

"You wanna get outta here?" Jay husked, out breath from the kiss.

Erin couldn't find the breath to put a sentence together, so her only response was to kiss him again.

They linked their hands together and quickly said goodbye to everyone before almost running out the door. They hopped in the closest cab, since neither of them were sober enough to drive, and Jay gave the driver his address.

Erin tugged on his ear with her teeth, and her hand traveled down to his groin. Jay had one hand on her waist and the other in her hair as he sucked on her neck. The cab ride was short, but not short enough. Once outside of Jay's apartment building, the couple separated so Jay could pay for the cab. The second the doors to the elevator were closed, their lips were connected again. Jay pressed Erin against the back wall and gripped her boobs.

When they reached Jay's floor, they stumbled to his door. Erin's hands explored Jay's body as he tried to unlock the door.

Finally, they were inside. Erin removed Jay's already loosened tie and started unbuttoning his dress shirt. Jay found the zipper to her dress and slipped the sequined material down her shoulders; leaving Erin in only her panties. Jay lifted her up, and she subconsciously wrapped her legs around his waist. They tumbled backwards to Jay's bed as Erin continued working on the buttons of Jay's shirt. Entering the bedroom, Jay threw Erin onto the bed and finished removing his button up and undershirt. Erin crawled to the edge of the bed to unbuckle and get rid of Jay's belt. She swiftly unzipped his pants and reached her hand inside. She could feel how hard he already was.

Jay cupped her face with his hand and brought her up to him, "Hi." His pupils were dilated as he stared into her eyes.

"Hi." She whispered, before locking her lips between his. He gently moved her backwards and lay her on the bed. Kicking off his shoes, he settled himself on top of her and kissed her lightly.

Erin could feel him between his legs, and Jay could feel the heat radiating from her. "I need you, Jay." Her voice was all but a whimper.

"Not yet," Jay smirked, making a trail of kisses down her body. Starting at her neck, Jay kissed down the valley of her breasts, stopping momentarily to gently suck on each nipple. He kissed his way down her stomach, over her belly button, and stopped when he reached the band of her underwear. He removed his hand from the breast it was massaging and slipped his fingers underneath the waistband, pulling down her underwear.

Erin arched her back in anticipation. After throwing her panties somewhere in the room, Jay went back to his trail. He kissed down her bare vulva and started to lick his way further down. He licked and suckled at the perfect speed until Erin couldn't take it anymore. "Oh, Jay!" She moaned, "Baby, I'm cumming!" Proceeding her orgasm, Jay licked up all of her juices and kissed his way back up her body, stopping at her lips.

She wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him closer to her if possible while she came down from her high. Once composed, Erin slipped off Jay's boxers and wrapped her fingers around his manhood. "Now?" She asked, seductively.

Jay kissed her again and in one swift movement, he was thrusting inside of her. He pumped harder at Erin's request, and they kissed sloppily between moans.

* * *

><p>"Wow." Erin said hours later, while she was tangled up in Jay's arms.<p>

"I know." Jay said with a grin.

"That was…"

"I know."

Erin stretched her neck and kissed his lips. "Do you think Ava's okay?" She asked, "Lexy hasn't called."

Jay shook his head, stroking her arm in the process, "She wouldn't call unless something was wrong. Everything's fine; relax."

They laid in Jay's bed silently for a few minutes before Erin spoke up again, "Why don't you move into my apartment- like, officially?" When Jay didn't answer, she continued, "Think about it; you're at my place ninety percent of the time as it is, there's more space for Ava over there, and there's no point paying rent every month when you're hardly ever here." Jay was still thinking about, and didn't give her an answer straight away. "And you know it's a big deal coming from me, right? With all my commitment issues and stuff." That earned a chuckle from Jay.

He looked down and made eye contact with her, "You really sure?"

Erin's eyes widened in excitement, "Really." She contemplated whether or not to let the next words slip from her mouth, "I love you, Jay Halstead."

Jay smiled from ear to ear. He'd known he was in love with her for a long time, but never knew when to say it, "I love you too, baby." After kissing her again, he gave her the answer she was waiting for. "And I will gladly move in with you."

They made love for hours, until neither of them could physically do it any longer. Both of them fell asleep happier tonight than either had in a long time.


	8. Chapter 8

"Good morning." Jay husked when they woke up the next morning, kissing Erin's shoulder.

"Mmm, morning." She replied with a smile. "What time is it?"

"A little after eight. I told Lexi we'd be home around nine." His hand began to travel south while he spoke, "How about a shower?" He asked seductively.

Erin turned in his arms and stretched her neck to give him a proper kiss. "A shower sounds nice." She said in between kisses.

With a final, quick, kiss, Erin and Jay got out of bed and walked towards Jay's bathroom; neither bothering to pull any sort of clothing on. Once they reached the bathroom, Erin sat on the toilet while Jay turned the water on in order for it to heat up. She watched with love in her eyes as he bent down and turned the handle, her gaze roaming his naked body.

A smile formed on her lips as Jay turned around and grabbed her hand, pulling her close to him. Skin on skin, their lips met again, and in one swift movement his hands gripped her thighs and picked her up; Erin in turn wrapping her legs around his waist as Jay carried her underneath the flowing water.

* * *

><p>"Okay, we are never doing that again." Erin said as she pressed the ice harder onto Jay's skull. In the midst of their lovemaking, a bar of soap had fallen off its respectful spot, causing Jay to slip and fall, his heading banging against the faucet. Erin, who was pressed up the wall, came tumbling down after him.<p>

"What, why?" Jay asked, hurt in his voice, "In all the times I've had shower sex, not once has that happened- it was a freak accident."

"So you're saying you have a lot of shower sex?" Erin joked, earning a look with a raised eyebrow from Jay.

"No, I'm saying that one slip up shouldn't stop us. We're great, and it was going pretty well until that stupid soap appeared out of nowhere!" He wasn't upset because he fell, he was upset because right as he slipped, he was seconds away from coming.

"Alright, we'll talk, but right now," She glanced at the clock, "it's a quarter to 9 and our baby is waiting. Let's get dressed." She removed the ice from Jay's head and threw it onto his towel covered lap, and gave him a chaste kiss before going to find some clothes.

They walked out of the apartment building hand in hand, stopping to kiss a little before they got in the car, Erin of course driving.

They didn't notice the strawberry blonde across the street, watching them intently as they stared into each other's eyes with love.

* * *

><p>"Would you hurry up?" Erin yelled at Jay while he tried to unlock the door to her apartment. "Let me do it!" She snapped just as Jay pushed the door open. Ava heard the door open and her head immediately turned in that direction. Her attention was torn away from the toys in front of her and she began crawling away. Lexi was quick on her feet behind her and picked her up before she got too far away.<p>

"Mama! Mama!" Ava cried, her arms reaching to Erin the second she'd laid eyes on her. Erin quickly dropped her purse on the side table and rushed to hold the baby girl that she might as well have given birth to.

"Hi sweetie." Erin cooed, kissing Ava's cheek and running her fingers through her hair.

Jay thanked and paid Lexy so she could be on her way before joining his girls in the living room.

"Dada!" Ava screamed once Jay had joined them, bringing a smile to both his and Erin's faces.

They had a few hours before Jay and Erin had to be at work, so Jay and Erin decided they'd get ready for the day and go get breakfast before dropping Ava off at the daycare.

* * *

><p>It was an extremely slow day for Chicago's criminals. It seems as if everyone was too hungover from the night before to be breaking any laws. As long as everyone was done with paperwork they were free to go by 3:30 that afternoon.<p>

Jay and Erin had filed all of their paperwork by 4:00 and were excited to get to pick up Ava before the daycare had actually closed for the night.

When they arrived at the daycare, they actually had trouble finding a parking spot, so they settled on Erin dropping Jay off and she would drive around while he ran in and got Ava; as it turned out, they didn't need to. Just as they circled around the parking lot, they saw someone pull out of a spot and immediately parked.

They joked about what they were going to do with the rest of their day without having to work while walking through the doors of the daycare.

"Mr. Halstead?" The girl at the front desk seemed confused, it was the same girl that wasn't going to let Erin take Ava home that first time she had picked her up months before.

He assumed she was confused because they were there to pick her up so early, "Yeah I know, slow day at work." He said and Erin chuckled in agreement. "What's that look for?" Jay asked when the confused expression didn't disappear from Mel's face.

"I was just wondering why you were here?" She replied, and Erin and Jay looked at each other- they were wearing the confused faces now.

"We're here to pick up Ava, we dropped her off this morning.I know we're here earlier than usual but-" Erin's sentence trailed off as she noticed Mel's face change from confusion to worry. "Where the hell is our kid?" Erin said, sternly.

"Her mom, her mom came and picked her up a few hours ago." Mel stuttered as she frantically searched the sign out sheet for Ava's name.

"Her mom? _I'm_ her mom!" Erin angrily shouted, loud enough for all of the other parents picking up their children to hear. You could almost see smoke coming from her ears she was so livid.

Jay ran a hand down the length of his face, in attempt to calm himself. "Alright, Mel, tell us exactly what happened.

* * *

><p>"<em>Hi, I'm here to pick up Ava Halstead." She said with a smile, she was well put together, and her friendly tone prompted Mel to look up from her computer.<em>

_When Mel looked up, she was met with a head of strawberry blonde curls, bright red lips, and bold blue eyes. "Are you a parent or legal guardian?" She asked. While she had learned from her encounter with Erin Lindsay months earlier, she still didn't want to to risk a child getting into the wrong hands._

_Anna panicked, she was Ava's mother, but she didn't know what rights she had at this point. It was all so messy. "Yes, I'm her mother." She said with confidence._

_Mel sighed in relief, thankful she wasn't going to have to deal with another complicated situation. "Great. You can sign her out here, and I'll go and collect her things." She pushed the sign out sheet towards Anna and walked away. She walked away without looking at the paperwork. The paperwork showing the only people allowed to pick up Ava Halstead are Jay Halstead, Erin Lindsay, and Hank Voight._

* * *

><p>"Oh my God." Mel whispered after telling Jay what had happened and the realization of her mistake had kicked in.<p>

"Call Voight."

**A/N: So sorry! I know it's been a while since I've updated, but I kinda didn't know where to take the story. (Because people can't be happy forever right?) I needed some angst, and I was struggling to find a plot twist that would fit my story and wasn't overdone, and I think I've finally found it! I've already started chapter 9, but I thought here was a good ending to this chapter. I'm a sucker for cliffhangers. Anyway, I hope you all like this update, and the next one should come quite quickly! Also, huge thanks to Jayne, Em, Amna, and Tay! I couldn't have had this inspiration without you guys! :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: As promised, here's the next chapter! Also, in case anyone was wondering, the FC I have in mind for Anna is Bridget Regan (when she had red hair). This chapter is really long, and I hope you all like where I'm taking this story!**

With a shaky hand, Erin pulled her cell phone from her pocket and dialed Voight's familiar number, as soon as she pressed call she spotted a familiar head of golden locks in the arms of a strawberry blonde. She ended the call and roughly nudged Jay's shoulder. "Jay." When he didn't answer right away she nudged him again, "Jay!" When he looked up, he saw the one and only Anna Walsh making her way across the daycare parking lot.

Jay stormed out of the lobby with Erin hot on his trail. Ava's eyes lit up when she saw her parents approaching her. Her cheeks were stained with tears and her eyes were red; she'd obviously not had a good few hours with Anna. She reached her arms out to Erin, and as soon as she was close enough, Erin tore her away from Anna's arms. "Mama!" She cried, the tears pooling in her eyes out of fear. She didn't know who this strange woman was and why her mom and dad looked so angry.

Anna's eyes glassed over when Ava was taken from her arms. She had a simple plan thought out. She was only going to take her for a few hours. Jay was never supposed to find out. She only wanted to get to know her daughter. Not only did Jay find out, but as expected- she had no idea how to take care of a child; even if she had her own blood.

To say he was angry would be an understatement. Jay Halstead had never been this furious in his entire life. "You gave her up, Anna!" Anna took a step back, startled by Jay's harsh voice. "You gave up your rights, what the hell are you doing back here?"

"I needed to see her, Jay." Her voice was almost a whisper it was so low.

"I'm sorry, Anna. But you literally have no right to." He didn't want to hear what else she had to say. With a scoff, Jay turned towards Erin and Ava and the three of them made their way to the car.

She wanted to explain. She had so much to explain, and so much to figure out, for Anna, this was going to be a rocky road; but she wasn't going to go down without a fight.

* * *

><p>"You're not gonna let me keep any of my furniture?" Jay asked in disbelief while standing in the middle of his apartment, packing up his things into boxes.<p>

It was going on midnight, and Erin really wasn't in the mood for Jay's complaining after the day they'd had. She wished he'd understand that they legitimately didn't need any of his furniture. "Jay, we already have everything we need at my place. Besides, nothing you have matches the stuff in my apartment." She said nonchalantly.

"You see this couch?" He said as he waltzed over to his leather couch and sat down. "First thing I bought when I got back to Chicago. It's sentimental to me." Jay said, trying to get a point across.

Erin cringed thinking about how old his couch was, "Well if you really love the couch that much…" Jay's eyes brightened with excitement as her words trailed off, "I guess you can just stay here with it and Ava and I can enjoy my huge apartment all to ourselves." She finished with a chuckle, watching him glare at her.

"You are so cruel, Detective Lindsay." He grinned, standing up from the couch and walking towards her. "I think you need to be punished."

Erin took a step back in anticipation, unsure about what Jay was going to do. "Jay…" She all but whispered as he creeped towards her. And in one swift movement, Jay had picked her up and threw her onto the couch, peppering sloppy kisses all over her face, neck, and collarbones. Erin giggled and attempted to free herself from his hold. "We have to pack Jay, you need to be out of here by tomorrow, and God knows how long we'll be stuck at work." She managed to say.

Jay groaned and moved his lips so they were attached to hers, letting them linger for a moment before releasing her. Once composed, Erin took a look around his little apartment, before saying "I like that picture." She said, referring to the orange and white motorcycle above his bed. "We can keep that." Jay smiled from ear to ear and toppled her once again.

The following night, they stood in Jay's empty apartment. All of the large pieces of furniture were either donated, sold, or taken to the junkyard. The only things they moved to Erin's were the photo, any of Jay's memoirs that he'd saved while growing up, and dishes or small things that would always be useful for them. They watched as Ava crawled around in awe of all the space. "Ready to go?" Jay asked, breaking the silence that filled the air.

"Yeah." Erin replied, walking towards Ava and reaching down to pick her up.

Jay took his key off of his key chain and placed it on the counter, and Erin did the same with the copy of the key Jay had given her what seemed like a lifetime ago. They walked out of the apartment Jay had lived in since he got back from Afghanistan without another word.

Anna had stayed away since the incident at the daycare, or so they thought. In reality, she had been going over the 'paperwork' her mother had sent to Jay months before on her behalf.

Before she approached Jay, she wanted to be sure she had every detail memorized, and there were no flaws in what she was about to do. Anna Walsh was angry at herself for what happened when Ava was born, but more so at her mother for what she had done in response.

* * *

><p>"<em>Anna I can't keep taking care of her for you!" Melissa Walsh yelled at her adult daughter. "This little girl already has no father, she can't grow up without a mother too." Anna only stared blankly ahead.<em>

_Anna had a normal pregnancy. Ava was born a few days before her due date, and was born with an average height and weight. Though after she was born, Anna started to have severe panic attacks about having to raise her alone, which ultimately resulted in her falling into a state of postpartum depression._

_Eventually, Anna's mom had to move in with her. She wasn't caring for Ava at all. When Melissa took Ava in for her her first checkup (about a week and a half after she was born), she found out the infant was underweight and had buildup of dirt behind her ears and between her toes. Melissa had a job of her own and was nearing sixty years old. She was not at a time in her life to be raising a child, though she helped all she could._

_Even Anna's sister, who had a family of her own was often bringing over dinner or taking Ava out while she ran errands._

_Anna's grandmother had suffered from depression, as did her mother as a teenager, so her family tried to help as much as they could; unfortunately it wasn't enough._

_Weeks passed and there was no sign of improvement in Anna's health. In the 6 weeks of Ava's short life, Anna had probably spent a total of 12 hours with her daughter; and most of those few hours were spent asleep. Melissa couldn't take it anymore. She contacted a lawyer friend she had met several years earlier. Anna couldn't care for her daughter, and there was no other choice._

_Melissa managed to draw up fake documents claiming Anna had given up her guardianship of Ava, and hand delivered the child to Jay's doorstep with a letter written by herself, claiming to be Anna._

_Things had improved for Anna after her mother took Ava to Jay. She began seeing a doctor about her condition, and her health began to improve. It took many months for her to recover and return back to the state she was in before Ava was born, but she did._

_When Anna found out all that her mother had done, she made it her mission to get Ava back. Everything Melissa had done was illegal, and invalid, and her lawyer definitely had a part in the operation as well._

_She'd been watching Jay for weeks. Taking note of his routine, and Erin. She didn't like the way Erin had pretty much taken over her role as Ava's mother. And even though her relationship with Jay was only a fling, she couldn't help but be jealous of the hazel eyed blonde. She waited for what she thought was the perfect opportunity to take Ava for a few hours after figuring out that they didn't usually pick her up until after 6pm. It was just her luck for them to get off early. And now, more obstacles were thrown her way._

* * *

><p>Jay and Erin had changed daycares, it was smaller and more private, and a little more out of their price range, but without having to pay Jay's rent they were able to put that cash to better use. This daycare knew that only Jay and Erin were allowed to take Ava home; with exceptions when notified.<p>

They managed to put the entire Anna situation behind them, barely remembering her existence, hoping she understood the message Jay had given and choosing to back off.

* * *

><p>Antonio had Eva and Diego for the weekend, and they wanted to go to the zoo- a new elephant had just been born and Eva was dying to see it- so he offered to take Ava along too. Jay happily obliged, the couple trusted Antonio with their lives, which came with trusting him with their daughter's. They needed a day off, in all honesty. The week was long, consisting of Erin tackling a 250 pound perp and the team solving a murder involving a major drug lord.<p>

Erin sat in her bra and underwear on her couch, awaiting the massage Jay had promised her earlier that morning. He'd been trying to avoid it all day, but Antonio would be back with Ava soon and she knew their alone time was limited. "You better get your ass in here or there will be no final round of unhushed sex!" She called to Jay, who was in the bathroom looking for lotion.

They had taken complete advantage of being alone today, even giving the shower sex another go. This time, it was much more successful. "You're out of that good Amber smelling one, we're gonna have to use the baby lotion." Jay announced while emerging from the bathroom, the Johnson&Johnson lotion in hand. Erin giggled slightly in return.

Jay sat down behind Erin and settled her between his legs. He squirted some lotion on his hands and began rubbing into the soft skin on Erin's back, and down her arms. As the massage got more intense, Jay pressed kisses along her neck and shoulders. His hands travelled around her body and cupped her breasts, his mouth never leaving her skin. Erin pressed her body closer to his and could feel his growing erection up against her bottom half. She tilted her neck and connected her lips with Jay's. Eventually, their lips detached and Erin turned in Jay's hold, now straddling him as she locked their lips once more. His hands explored the body he'd come to know so well these past few weeks while hers tangled up in his short curls. She moaned into his mouth as his fingers found her vulva, and once inside her, she rocked with them. Her moans grew louder as she reached her high and Jay smiled into the kiss. After her first orgasm, Erin reached into Jay's boxers and pumped his length, preparing him for what was about to come. Quickly removing his boxers, Erin slipped onto him and began rocking her hips harder against his. She couldn't hide the noises that escaped her lips the faster she bounced on his cock.

Jay sat up in a 90 degree angle and flipped them over. Now on top, he thrusted deeper into her heat, causing both of their moans to increase. They were both close, and in a pure state of bliss. They almost didn't hear the knocking on their apartment door. _Almost._

"Fuck." Jay whispered into Erin's mouth between kisses. He knew with only a few more thrusts he and Erin would both be coming. The knocking only intensified as they tried to finish. They hoped it was only Antonio, even though wasn't supposed to be back for at least another hour; and they prayed to God he hadn't heard them.

He covered her mouth with his when she finally came moments later, and she did the same for him seconds later. The pair quickly composed themselves and Jay slipped out of Erin, pulled on his boxers and went to answer the door.

Erin grabbed the throw blanket from the back of the couch and went in her bedroom to find some clothes. She found her phone on the way and checked it. Antonio had texted her and told her that he was taking the kids to dinner, and it would be at least another two hours before he'd be bringing Ava home. Panic began to fill her as Erin wondered who would be on the other side of the door. If Voight overheard her and Jay having sex she wouldn't know what to do. She frantically threw on the first articles clothing she found and went back out to the living room, afraid of who she'd find in there.

Walking into the living room, she was shocked to see it was empty. She searched around for Jay and the surprise guest, and found Jay yelling in a hushed tone to a figure she couldn't see on the opposite side of him. She trolled towards them and was angered when she recognized the woman standing in front of her boyfriend.

"Jay if you'd let me explain!" Anna pleaded.

"Anna you explained just fine in your letter. I can understand that you don't want to be a mother, but it's too late to be changing your mind now. She's happy. She has a mother, who loves her more than you ever have! You don't need to explain anything else. We're fine, you're not needed around here."

Erin quietly approached them and wrapped a protective arm around Jay's waist, letting him know she's there.

Anna's eyes began to fill with unfallen tears, "I didn't send the letter, Jay. I was sick, I couldn't love her. But I can now, please give me a chance." She begged for forgiveness with her eyes and handed him a folder filled with a large stack of papers. "Look this over. I'll be awaiting your call." Anna then left the couple standing in their doorway, confused and stunned.


	10. Chapter 10

Jay and Erin sat in their living room, a few empty beer bottles on the side table next to the couch, and Anna's files spread out across the coffee table. They'd spent the last few hours reading every line of every piece of paper, all the way down to the fine print. "Unbelievable." Jay groaned, standing up from the couch to go and get another beer.

Everything Jay had received when Ava was dropped off at his door was fake. Aside from Ava's birth certificate and shot records, all of the documents were forged by Melissa's lawyer friend. Joseph & Jones wasn't even a real law firm. Technically, Anna still had all of her rights.

"What does this mean?" Erin asked several minutes after Jay had returned with beers for the both of them.

Jay leaned his head on the back of the couch and shut his eyes, "I don't know; I mean, we can't legally keep Ava from her."

"What if we fought for full custody? I'm sure-" Erin was abruptly interrupted before she could finish wondering out loud.

"Do you know how many custody battles end well for the father, Erin? Courts almost always favor the mother!" He fumed, running his free hand down his face.

"Do you have any other ideas? Because I'd love to hear them!" Erin snapped back as she placed her hands on her hips.

A thick silence filled the room as they both tried to calm themselves. "She abandoned her baby, Jay. If we get the right lawyers, it could be an equal fight." Erin finally suggested, taking in a breath and shrugging her shoulders. She could tell Jay was toying with the idea, "Why don't you sleep on it, yeah? Let's go to bed; we'll talk in the morning." Erin walked towards him and grasped his hand, leading him into the bedroom.

They lay in bed for a while, but neither of them were sleeping. "I'm sorry, Er." Erin turned her head to look at him when she heard his voice. "I'm so sorry." His voice was broken, sounding like he was struggling to stay composed.

She turned the rest of her body and held his hand, "For what? None of this is your fault, Jay."

"I told you - promised you - she'd never come back." He stared up at the ceiling as he spoke, avoiding eye contact.

"Jay you didn't know. Everything is fine, and we're gonna fight this, okay? Jay sighed heavily, still refusing to make eye contact. "Jay, look at me," When he finally twisted his neck, Erin moved her hand up to his face and stroked his cheek. "Don't give up on me here, don't give up on Ava. Because at the end of the day, that little girl is all that matters." He didn't say anything, he only kissed her passionately. The love she had for his daughter only made him fall harder for her, and he wanted to make sure she knew it.

* * *

><p>"Jay, have you seen the purple binky?" Erin called out as she packed up Ava's diaper bag. They were already running late, and somehow Ava's current pacifier had gone missing.<p>

Jay peeked his head out from the bathroom, "She had it when she was picking at her oatmeal earlier; it might be in the kitchen."

Erin sighed, most mornings weren't usually like this, but since she and Jay were up so late going over all the paperwork, they had slept through their alarm; and the usual morning baby Ava wasn't awake as early as she usually was. She looked down at Ava, who was happily chewing on a teething ring, and made her way to the kitchen. "Okay baby, where is it?" She muttered to herself, looking around Ava's high chair. It wasn't on the floor or anywhere near the high chair, so Erin checked the sink. Sure enough, there sat the binky floating in the bowl being soaked to prevent the oatmeal from hardening. "Gross." She shook off the pacifier and quickly disinfected it. "Babe, you ready? You know Voight's gonna blame you if we're late."

As she spoke, Jay emerged from the bathroom, completely ready to go. He grabbed both of their coats from their respective hooks, handing Erin hers and pulling his own up his arms. "Got everything?" He asked, checking his pockets to make sure he wasn't forgetting anything. Once Erin nodded, he picked up Ava and the three were out the door.

When they stepped off the elevator onto the ground floor of the apartment building, Anna was just walking through the glass doors. Erin and Jay both inwardly groaned, they didn't have time for this right now. As Anna approached them, Ava clung tightly to Jay's jacket; she still didn't like this strange woman. "Anna, we don't have time." Jay hissed when Anna opened her mouth in attempt to speak. They continued walking, and somehow, Anna took that as a cue to follow.

"I just thought maybe I could spend the day with her?" Anna requested, causing Jay and Erin to come to a hault.

"You thought you could spend the day with her?" Jay sneered, letting out a sarcastic laugh. "Anna, she doesn't know you, and you don't know her. If Erin and I do decide to let you in her life, it's gonna be a long road before we let you have an hour alone with her, let alone a whole day." Without another word, Jay lead Erin to the car.

* * *

><p>"The nerve of her, y'know?" Jay said to Erin once they were in the car. She knew it was a rhetorical question, and he wasn't really looking for an answer, so she didn't respond; she only kept her eyes on the road. "We need to call my lawyer when we get to the district. I want this settled as soon as possible."<p>

Halfway through their day, Intelligence landed a new case. A politician from Colorado was in Chicago with his family, and his daughter was kidnapped. It appears that said politician may have been involved in a drug smuggling act as well, most likely the reason behind his daughter's abduction.

The daughter was found right away, but with no other leads, they decided to shut down for the night. It was late, and Ava was asleep at the precinct - they had to send Nadia to go and pick her up once the daycare closed at 6:00 - and the team concluded they all needed a good nights rest.

Jay's mind was elsewhere most of the day, he'd called his lawyer as soon as he got to work, and explained the situation. His lawyer told him that he wasn't the right guy for the case, and gave him a number for Monique Juarez, a lawyer from his firm who specialized in custody battles.

Before he got the chance to call Monique, the case rolled in, so he'd have to wait until the following morning to do so.

* * *

><p>"Pizza or Thai?" Erin asked during the car ride home. "If we call it in now by the time we get settled at home it should get there." She glanced at him quickly, looking for a reply.<p>

Jay scrunched up his face, even though they hadn't eaten all day, he wasn't very hungry. "Let's do Thai. I'll call it in."

Hours later, they sat cuddled up on the couch, watching a late night talk show. Ava woke up when the delivery boy banged as hard as humanly possible on the door, and refused to go back to sleep without being held; so in one arm, Jay held his daughter, and he had the other wrapped around Erin's shoulders, her head on his chest.

As they fell asleep, everything felt right. Just being in each other's presence caused them to relax, and forget about their problems, at least for a little while.

**A/N: This chapter is pretty much just a short, filler chapter to get the ball rolling on the custody battle. I've got a lot of ideas I'm toying with and I am really excited to see what my head comes up with. A lot of twists and turns that I don't think you're gonna see coming! As always, thank you readers and reviewers, without you I wouldn't have the inspiration to write. And thank you #chifam for betaing and planting ideas! Love y'all! -Mary :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Another filler chapter, I really want to make sure I don't rush this so I'm trying my best to level it out. Not making any promises, but the trial MIGHT start next chapter. I always have a plan in mind but then my brain goes elsewhere as I'm writing and I don't want my chapters to be filled with unrelated content. Enjoy :~) -Mary**

* * *

><p>"Alright, I've got a meeting with Monique tomorrow." Jay said, hanging up his phone when he returned to the bull pen. "I'll call Anna later today and let her know we're fighting for custody."<p>

Erin nodded in response. This was literally her worst nightmare. Her doubts were beginning to sink back in as she once again realized she isn't Ava's biological mother. She could love that little girl with all of her heart, but she knew that without Anna's consent - which was unlikely - she'd never be able to take full responsibility for her.

Jay noticed the worry in Erin's eyes, and pulled himself together to reassure her nothing was going to change. "You're her mom, Erin. Don't forget that."

There was arguing when Jay had called Anna later that night. A lot of arguing. She was upset because until the trial was over, Jay didn't want Ava to be around her at all. Her reasoning being once the case was over, she'd be spending time with her anyway, and in her opinion, the sooner the better. Jay wasn't ready to lose Ava, and he was afraid letting her get close to Anna would only hurt her. In reality, while they both wanted what was best for Ava, they each had clouded judgements based on their own selfish needs.

* * *

><p>"Hey Antonio, Lexy wanted some cash and offered to watch Ava for the night. Erin and I were gonna go to Molly's, you in?" Jay asked the following night after work. At first, Jay and Erin were hesitant to leave Ava after all that's been happening this week, but ultimately decided a night out would be good for them.<p>

"Actually, I can't." He paused, as if debating whether or not to expand, "I, have a date." Cheers erupted from the various members of Intelligence, as everyone was happy that Antonio had finally moved on from Laura.

"How did the meeting with Monique go today?" Erin questioned Jay while they sat alone at Molly's. Their case involving the politician from Chicago had gotten wrapped up today and they hadn't really a chance to talk about the meeting.

Jay inwardly groaned, "She says it's gonna be difficult, but we have a chance. We do have the advantage that I've been raising her without Anna for almost a year now, and as horrible it sounds, Anna's depression can also be used to our advantage. If we're lucky, her lawyer won't be a very good one and won't dig deep into me. I think the worst they've got is the Rodiger case; which is buried anyway." He took a swig of beer before continuing, "I need to put together a list of witnesses willing to testify on my behalf. The first day of the trial is set for February 11th."

"Jay, that's two weeks away!" Erin exclaimed, and immediately began to stress. "Are you going to be ready? There's a lot we need to do."

Jay set his beer down on the table and took her hand his, "Babe, relax. Monique is one of the best lawyers in the city. We're gonna win this."

There was a part of Jay, buried deep down, that didn't want to keep Ava from Anna forever. The thought of not letting a mother see her child haunted him, but he reminded himself that Anna really wasn't Ava's mother. She never has been. Which in turn, made him want to fight that much harder for his daughter.

* * *

><p>"Someone got lucky last night!" Ruzek joked when he saw Antonio walk up the stairs to Intelligence, resulting in catcalls from Kevin and Jay. Erin just rolled her eyes, and tried to hide the smirk that formed on her lips.<p>

"Alright, alright. Calm your tits." Antonio grinned, "No details." He pointed at Ruzek when he tried to interject. "None."

After Antonio was sitting, Jay stood up, and asked for everyone's attention. "Um, I'm not sure how many of you guys know, but Ava's mom is back, and she's fighting for custody. And I don't want my little girl to be taken from me, so I'm asking all of you - if you're willing - to please testify for me." He was immediately met with voices of encouragement.

* * *

><p>Jay had a long conversation with his lawyer, and Monique decided the best thing to do to help him, was let Anna see Ava. That way they'd be able to see how Ava reacts with her and how well Anna could do as a mother. Her first monitored visit was tonight. Anna was actually coming over to his and Erin's shared apartment to spend time with their daughter.<p>

"She's late." Jay grunted, Anna was supposed to be at the apartment at 7:30. It was going on 8:00 and she still hadn't arrived. Ava's bed time was in less than an hour and she was already starting to get fussy. "If she doesn't get here in less than 5 minutes, we aren't letting her in when she gets here, deal?"

Erin looked up at him from her spot on the floor with Ava, "I say we don't let her in at all." She suggested, shrugging her shoulders.

Jay let out a breathy laugh, "As much as I love that idea, we can't. It's best for our case if we let her see her."

"Yeah, I know." Erin replied with an extra raspy voice as she moved some hair out of Ava's face. Her once bald head had now turned into a full head of golden brown locks. There was slight curl to it, and it seemed to get longer and darker by the day. She had grown so much since that first day that Jay called Erin in for help; in a way, symbolizing their growth as a family.

A few moments later, a knocking echoed through the spacious apartment. Erin and Jay looked at each other and took in a deep breath, "Here we go."

Erin stayed with Ava while Jay went to answer the door, "You're late." He said upon opening it.

Anna tried to joke it off, "Yeah, sorry, I just started seeing this guy and-" Jay showed absolutely no interest in her excuses, so she moved on, "nevermind. Thank you, Jay; for letting me see her."

"I'm not doing it for you." He snapped, widening the door so she could enter the threshold.

Anna felt extremely uncomfortable and awkward as she took in her surroundings. The apartment was close to spotless, take away the few toys of Ava's spread out across the living room. Even at its cleanest, Anna's apartment wasn't this clean. She noticed Ava playing peek-a-boo with Erin a few feet away, and decided to intervene.

Ava's fits of giggles came to a sudden stop when she noticed Anna sit down next to her, and she crawled into Erin's lap for security. "Hi, Ava. You wanna play with your mommy?" Erin and Jay tensed when they heard Anna call herself Ava's 'mommy', and they shared a look. Erin felt uncomfortable calling her out on it, but Jay had no problem in doing so.

"That doesn't fly, Anna. If you're gonna be here you need to understand that, at least in this moment, you are not her mom."

With a tight lipped smile, Anna agreed, "Fine." She sighed and reached a hand out to Ava, but Ava didn't return the gesture; instead, she crawled all over Erin like a monkey, tugging on her ears and face. "You just let her walk all over you like that?" Anna asked, astounded by Erin's reaction to the infant's pulling at her face.

"She only does it when she's nervous." Erin replied shortly, glaring at Anna.

The tension in the room was so thick, it could be cut with a butter knife. Anna continued to try and get Ava's attention, only to be shut down time and time again. The three adults in the room didn't speak at all, apart from the occasional laugh after Ava did something silly. Eventually, Ava got herself settled in a sitting position in Erin's lap and fell asleep.

"And that's my cue to leave." Anna said as she came to the realization that Ava had fallen asleep.

Jay stood from his seat on the couch and took Ava from Erin's arms, giving her a quick peck after pulling her up from the floor.

When Jay had disappeared into into the bedroom, Anna turned to Erin, "Damn, he never once looked at me like that." She muttered.

"Well yeah, he never loved you." Erin knew her words were harsh, but it's not like Anna actually believed Jay ever loved her. Their relationship was a fling, and even though it resulted in Ava - the greatest thing to ever happen to him - it never meant anything more; Erin was only speaking the truth.

Anna watched, her mouth agape, as Erin turned away and walked towards the bedroom to join Jay, removing her shirt in the process. After registering the fact that she was still in Erin and Jay's apartment, Anna turned on her heels and left, utterly speechless.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Hey guys! I'm really not sure if you guys will like the way this chapter is written or not. I did a lot of research on custody battles in order to write this chapter, but please keep in mind, I am no lawyer, nor have I ever been in involved in a custody battle. I tried to make this as realistic as possible, I even searched online for mock trials and such, but I could only find them for criminal cases, so I did my best. I thought long and hard on how to end the custody battle, and based on my research, this was probably the most realistic option. I tried to not make it too boring, and I hope I was successful, while still getting a point across. And just so you know, this isn't the end! The story will probably be coming to a close within the next 5 or so chapters, though. I have one more major plot twist and then I will putting this story to an end. I'd like to thank all of my loyal readers and reviewers. So much inspiration! PLEASE let me know what you think of this chapter, yeah?**

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><p>Anna had been visiting more and more over the past week, but Ava still had yet to warm up to her. Maybe it was because somewhere, deep down inside of her, she knew that his woman abandoned her. But it's difficult to get into the brain of infant; the only clear thing being Ava does not like Anna.<p>

Jay and Erin decided not to let Anna have any alone time with Ava until the custody battle was settled, to protect her. They were trying to prepare her in the case that Jay lost, and she does have to be with Anna, while also attempting to prevent her from getting too attached to Anna, in the case he won, and Anna disappeared again.

Today was the day of the trial, and Jay and Erin were both exhausted. "So how dirty are we getting, Jay?" Erin asked, while getting ready for the long day that was awaiting.

"Monique and I tried to do the best we could to go deep, but not deep enough to where we'd have to get real dirty. I mean, I think the worst thing we're gonna use is her depression." He replied as he rinsed the shampoo out of his hair.

"What do you think she's gonna pull?"

"There's nothing she really has on me, really." Jay simply stated, shrugging his shoulders.

Erin sighed, "What about the Rodiger case?" She questioned, chewing the inside of her cheek.

He inwardly groaned, he actually was prepared for this question, he and Monique spent a lot of time going over it, "It's handled, baby, don't worry. We've got this." He tried to reassure her, while also trying to reassure himself.

* * *

><p>After dropping off Ava at daycare, Jay and Erin make their way to the courthouse. The trial was set to be finished by 3pm, without complications, and Erin would be the last witness Jay would call to the stand, as she was the most important and influential in Ava's life. He also had Lexy and Ava's nanny prepared to testify on his behalf.<p>

"All rise." At the sound of those words, Jay and Erin, Monique, Anna, and and Anna's lawyer, Jessica Pitt, stood as the judge entered the room. "Judge Avery presiding. Please be seated."

The judge took a minute to familiarize herself with the case before starting, "Good morning. This court is assigned to resolve a custody arrangement for Ava Nicole Halstead, between Jay Mitchell Halstead and Anna Renee Walsh. Ms. Juarez, would you like to make an opening statement concerning your client?"

Monique stood as she prepared to brief the judge, "Yes, your honor. The evidence shown here today will prove that my client, Jay Halstead, is capable of raising a child with or without the help of the defendant on trial. Mr. Halstead has been raising his daughter, Ava, alone as of September the 2nd of 2014, when she was abandoned on his door step. On file, we have proof of paternity, as well as the child's medical records. Ms. Walsh has been visiting Mr. Halstead's home frequently since her return to the child's life in January of 2015. Finally, our list of witnesses that will be testifying on behalf of Mr. Halstead."

Once Monique was seated, Jessica stood from her chair, "Your honor, we are here today with evidence showing why my client, Anna Walsh is filing for joint custody of her daughter, Ava Halstead. Anna suffered from postpartum depression shortly after the birth of her daughter and Ava was taken to Mr. Halstead without her knowledge. Several documents were forged, unbeknownst to my client at the time."

The judge nodded, "Ms. Juarez, please call your first witness."

"I call Jay Halstead to the stand."

Monique's questions to Jay had already been discussed beforehand, and Jay answered every single one without hesitation. They included how long Ava had been living with Jay, about the visitations he and Anna had arranged over the past few weeks, and about Ava in general. "No further questions, your honor."

At this time, Anna's lawyer began questioning Jay. Anna's lawyer hadn't gone deep into Jay's past at all. He knew the only thing they had on him besides the ordeal with Lonnie Rodiger, was his profession, and he had that in the bag.

The judge asked him questions about his home, in which he shared with Erin, his financial status, and about Ava's medical history and development.

Next, they called Antonio to the stand, and he was asked what type of father Jay was, and whether or not it seemed as if Jay was a capable father. The routine continued with Voight, Adam, and Al. Lexy was mostly questioned about Ava, as was the same with Ava's nanny. They were asked how often they watched Ava, and how they saw Jay treat her.

Finally, it was Erin's turn to be called to the stand. "Please raise your right hand. Do you solemnly swear that the testimony you are about to give is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"I do."

Monique's questions towards Erin went wonderfully, and helped Jay's case in more ways than one.

Until now, there had been no dirty questions directed at any of Jay's witnesses. Apparently Anna had her lawyer do all the digging on Erin, which was pretty pointless anyway because none of it was related to the case. "And, Ms. Lindsay, how many times were you arrested before your 16th birthday? The lawyer asked, staring deeply into Erin's eyes.

"Objection! How is this relevant?" Monique called out, grabbing the judge's attention.

"Objection sustained."

"I have no further questions, your honor." The judge then called for a break in the trial, as they prepared to switch from Jay's case to Anna's.

* * *

><p>Jay was furious at Anna for bringing up Erin's past like that. He was sure that the only reason she did it was to make him angry, so he tried his best to not act on his anger. Instead, during the break he wrapped Erin up in his arms, and held her tightly. "I'm sorry, babe. I didn't know they were gonna attack you like that."<p>

Erin felt the vibrations from his voice against her face, as she rested her head on his chest. She pulled away to look at him, "It's okay. Make sure to thank Monique for that objection, though." She said with a laugh, "Let's get back in there and protect our girl, yeah?"

He wrapped an arm around her and kissed her head, "Yeah." He spoke with a smile.

* * *

><p>Anna had very few witnesses. She wasn't on speaking terms with any of her family after finding out what they had done, and most of the people in her life either met her after she had given Ava away, or didn't know her well enough to testify.<p>

When called to the stand, Monique and Jessica asked her about her depression, and her recovery. She was asked to recite everything she remembered from before Ava had been turned over to Jay. Like Jay, she spoke about her financial status, she also included how she had a 2 bedroom apartment where she had a room set up for Ava.

"Ms. Pitt, do you have any other witnesses?" The judge asked after Anna had been called down from the stand.

"Just one more. I call Dr. Ryan Halstead to the witness stand." Jay's head immediately snapped towards the back doors of the courtroom. Why was his brother being called in as a witness to testify against him? Jay and his brother were really close growing up, but they had drifted apart as they approached adulthood, but they were still on good terms. Ryan was just a few years older than Jay, and right after graduating college, he went to a small medical school somewhere out of the city. Jay didn't even know he was in town.

Ryan wasn't called to the stand as an uncle to Ava, in fact, he was unaware of Anna's relationship with his brother. He was called as a medical professional. Ryan has been Anna's doctor since she was diagnosed with postpartum depression. He helped her through it, and Anna was dumb enough to not put two and two together and realize her doctor was her baby daddy's brother.

"Dr. Halstead, please answer the question. Do you believe that Anna Walsh is in a stable enough mental state in order to be a fit mother?" Ryan was in a dilemma; on the one hand this could completely ruin his relationship with his brother, but on the other hand, Anna had gotten excessive amounts of treatment over the past 6 months, and a part of him did believe she could be a mother to her child. But not if that child was his niece.

He cleared his throat before answering, and through his peripheral vision noticed both Jay and Anna tense up, "No, I do not believe that Anna Walsh is ready to be the sole caretaker of a child." He saw the tears well up in Anna's eyes, but seeing relief wash over his baby brother's face set all guilt aside.

Everybody sat in silence while the judge finalized his decision. "Ms. Walsh, I commend you for getting yourself through your depression and readying yourself to have a relationship with your child. Over the course of this trial, I have heard how hard you have been trying, but I have also heard what the loved ones of Mr. Halstead and yourself had to say today. While I appreciate your efforts, and desire to be a part of your daughter's life, I have to think about what is best for the child. With that being said, I grant full custody to Mr. Halstead, with supervised visitation to Ms. Walsh. Ms. Walsh is free to refile this arrangement in the future if she wishes. Court is adjourned."

Erin and Jay both let out a sigh of relief as they stood, immediately latching onto one another.

Tears filled Anna's eyes, she wanted so badly to be a mother to her child. And she was blaming everyone but herself, refusing to take fault in her own actions that ultimately caused the dispute. She watched Jay and Erin across the courtroom before her lawyer escorted her out. "I will get my daughter back, if it is the last thing I do." She silently muttered to herself, so quiet even her lawyer couldn't hear.


End file.
